Materials and methods for extending shelf-life of foods

ABSTRACT

A food with an extended shelf-life and a method of extending shelf-life of food is provided herein. The extended shelf-life is provided by treating the food with at least one shelf-life extender selected from a group consisting of an isothiocyanate, a non-aromatic cyclic ketone, a boronic acid, a ligand and their precursors.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No.63/140,160 filed Jan. 21, 2021 and U.S. Provisional Application No.63/231,890 filed Aug. 11, 2021 both of which are incorporated herein byreference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is related to extending the shelf-life of foodssuch as produce; liquid foods, such as milk and juices; and processedfoods, such as cheeses, by treating them with cyclic ketones, boronicacids, isothiocyanates and/or chelating agents.

BACKGROUND

Food is a substance consumed to provide nutritional support for animalsand humans. Food usually consists of a plant, animal or fungal origin,and contains essential nutrients, such as carbohydrates, fats, proteins,vitamins and minerals. Many plants and plant parts are eaten as food andaround 2,000 plant species are cultivated for food. Meat is animal fleshthat is eaten as food.

Produce spoils due to many reasons but the major ones are (i) ripeningand over ripening, (ii) discoloration or changing colors such as fromgreen to yellow or red, (iii) biological growth such as growth offungus, and (iv) loss of water which results in loss ofcrispiness/firmness. The terms, loss of crispness, loss of firmness,wilt, loss of water, dehydration and sweating are used interchangeablyherein. Polygalacturonase (PG) activity is largely responsible forpectin depolymerization and solubilization and results in a loss offirmness. Suppression of polygalacturonase activity reduces fruitsoftening.

Some fruits and vegetables naturally contain the enzymepolyphenoloxidase that, when combined with oxygen in the air, react tocause discoloration or color change. This process begins as soon as theskin or peel of many produce is removed. Apples, pears, bananas, grapes,potatoes, lettuce, and avocadoes are fruits and vegetables that turnbrown as the flesh of the produce is exposed to oxygen.

Meat spoils due to a large number of factors with one of the most commonbeing microorganisms such as mold and other bacteria. The term mold isused interchangeably with fungus and microbes such as bacteria andviruses. Microorganisms present in meat cause proteins and fats to breakdown, spoiling the meat and reaching levels that are unsafe for humanconsumption. As these microorganisms colonize a piece of meat they beginto break it down, leaving behind toxins that can cause enteritis or foodpoisoning, which is potentially lethal in the rare case of botulism. Adiscoloration of meat is yet another vital sign of spoilage. Fresh meatshould have a pinkish-red color or be colorless.

The Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) estimated that food wastecauses a global economic, environmental and social cost of $2.6 trillionin 2014. The global dairy market size was valued at US$673.8 billion in2018, and about 20% of milk and dairy products are wasted. Hence, thereis a need to develop a simple process of extending the shelf-life ofmilk which can eliminate the need for pasteurization and refrigeration.

Preservatives are commonly used in the art for preservation of food.Preservatives are substances or chemicals that are added to products,such as food products, beverages, pharmaceuticals and many otherproducts to prevent decomposition by microbial growth or by undesirablechemical changes. In general, preservation is implemented in two modes,chemical and physical. Chemical preservation involves adding chemicalcompounds to the product. Physical preservation involves processes, suchas refrigeration, freezing, drying, modifying the atmosphere, such asreplace air with nitrogen, and vacuum packing. Shelf-life of manyproduce, such as apples and cucumbers, is extended by wax coating. Allkind of materials, devices and processes which extend shelf-life offood, including food preservatives, are also referred to as shelf-lifeextenders herein.

To prevent sprouting of potatoes materials such as chlorpropham[Isopropyl N-(3-chlorophenyl) carbamate], di-isopropyl naphthalene,1,4-dimethyl-naphthalene, 3-decene-2ene, ethylene, hydrogen peroxide,spearmint oil, peppermint oil, orange oil and maleic hydrazine arereported.

Physical methods for extending shelf-life of juices are reportedincluding microfiltration, high pressure, UV radiation and pulsedelectric fields.

In spite of the extensive effort, there remains a strong need formaterials and methods suitable for reducing food waste. A particularneed is for materials and methods that can be used by small farmers, athome, on almost any produce, on meat and fish, on processed/preparedfoods and on liquid foods such as milk and juices. There is also astrong need for materials and methods to reduce food waste by minimizingfungus growth, germination/sprouting and delay ripening of produce.

Provided herein is improved materials and processes for extending theshelf-life of foods.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the invention to provide materials, processes anddevices to extend shelf-life of meat, produce, liquid foods andprocessed foods by reducing development of fungus and bacteria, reducingloss of crispness or water, keeping produce green longer, delayingripening, and/or reducing sprouting or germination with preservativessuch as isothiocyanates, boronic acids, cyclic ketones, chelate ligandsor mixtures thereof.

It is another object of the invention to extend shelf-life of foods withpreservatives such as isothiocyanates, boronic acids, cyclic ketones,chelate ligands or a mixture thereof.

It is another object of the invention to extend shelf-life of foods withpreservatives such as allyl isothiocyanates, ethyl isothiocyanate, butylboronic acid, phenyl boronic acid, cyclohexanone, 2-cyclohexene-1-one,acetylacetone or a mixture thereof.

A particular feature of the invention to provide processes for exposingor treating foods with shelf-life extenders.

It is another feature of the invention to provide devices such assachets and micro-capsules for control and on-demand release ofpreservatives for extending shelf-life of foods.

It is another feature of the invention to provide adducts, complexes,conjugates, or humidity sensitive precursors which release theshelf-life extenders when exposed to water or humidity.

It is another feature of the invention to provide precursors such asthioglucosides, or conjugates of glucose which when exposed to humidityor water produce an isothiocyanate, sulfur-containing organic compoundsand sulfur salts of a metal such as Himalayan salt which reacts withwater produce hydrogen sulfide and ammonium compounds such as ammoniumcarbamate which decomposes to ammonia and carbon dioxide with or withoutmoisture under ambient temperature.

It is another feature of the invention to provide an apparatus or acontainer for exposing a food to a vapor or a sachet of a shelf-lifeextender or its precursor.

A particular advantage of the invention is the ability to extend theshelf-life of produce by blocking enzymes and other biochemicals whichare responsible for the spoilage of foods with the shelf-life extenders.

These and other embodiments of the invention will be realized a foodwith an extended shelf-life wherein the extended shelf-life is providedby treating said food with at least one shelf-life extender or itsprecursor selected from a group consisting of an isothiocyanate, anon-aromatic cyclic ketone, a boronic acid, a ligand.

Yet another embodiment is provided in a shelf-life extender or itsprecursor for treatment of food selected from a group consisting of anisothiocyanate, a non-aromatic cyclic ketone, a boronic acid and aligand.

Yet another embodiment is provided in a method of extending theshelf-life of food comprising treating the food with a shelf-lifeextender or its precursor selected from a group consisting of anisothiocyanate, a non-aromatic cyclic ketone, a boronic acid, a ligand.

Yet another embodiment is provided in a method of extending theshelf-life of food comprising treating the food by a method selectedfrom the group consisting of adding a shelf-life extender or itsprecursor to said food, exposing said food to a vapor of said shelf-lifeextender, coating said food with said shelf-life extender, releasingsaid shelf-life extender from a sachet wherein the shelf-life extenderis selected from a group consisting of an isothiocyanate, a non-aromaticcyclic ketone, a boronic acid and a ligand.

Yet another embodiment is provided in a method of extending theshelf-life of food comprising a method selected from the groupconsisting of delaying fungus growth by treating the food with ashelf-life extender or its precursor, delaying germination or sproutingof the food by treating the food with a shelf-life extender, delayingripening of the food by treating a food with the shelf-life extender anddelaying dehydration or wilting of a food by treating the food with ashelf-life extender wherein the shelf-life extender is selected from agroup consisting of an isothiocyanate, a non-aromatic cyclic ketone, aboronic acid and a ligand.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF FIGURES

FIG. 1 is a photograph indicating retardation of the growth of fungus onblueberries.

FIG. 2 is a photograph indicating retardation on growth of fungus oncheese.

FIG. 3 is a photograph indicating delayed ripening of green tomatoes.

FIG. 4 is a photograph indicating delayed ripening of avocado.

FIG. 5 is a photograph indicating delayed sprouting of potatoes.

FIG. 6 is a photograph indicating retarded germination of unhusked rice.

FIG. 7 is a photograph indicating delayed curdling of pasteurized milk.

FIG. 8 is a photograph indicating delayed fungus growth on cold pressedfresh red tomato juice.

DESCRIPTION

Provided herein are shelf-life extenders which are particularly suitablefor use on produce and particularly fruits, vegetables and meats. Theinventive shelf-life extenders inhibit or stop the growth of fungus,improve aging of green produce which can be kept green longer, delayripening of some fruits, extend the freshness and crispiness of produce,preserve liquid foods such as milk and juices; prevent sprouting orgeminating of seeds such as grains, legumes, nuts and root vegetablessuch potatoes; reduce sweating or perspiration of produce which reducesshriveling, extends the freshness of prepared of processed foods andreduces oxidation and browning. Exemplary shelf-life extenders includeisothiocyanates, boronic acids, cyclic ketones, chelating agents andcombinations thereof.

Particularly preferred shelf-life extenders are selected from a groupconsisting of allyl isothiocyanates, ethyl isothiocyanate, butyl boronicacid, phenyl boronic acid, cyclohexanone, 2-cyclohexene-1-one,acetylacetone, ethylene diamine and mixtures thereof.

The method for introducing the shelf-life extenders to the food is notparticularly limited however, adding as a solid, spraying, coating,dipping, rinsing or washing in a solution comprising at least oneshelf-life extender, pre-exposure to shelf-life extender, controlledrelease of a solution comprising shelf-life extender, and exposing to avapor of shelf-life extender are exemplary for demonstration of theinvention.

Liquid shelf-life extenders can be added to the foods directly, can beformed as a coating on the food, applied from a solution or applied byexposure to vapors of the shelf-life extenders.

Solid shelf-life extenders can be added in foods by incorporating theshelf-life extender in a solution or by vapor deposition if the solidshelf-life extender sublimes.

Foods can be treated first with methods such as addition, coating,dipping, rinsing and pre-exposure then exposed to a controlledenvironment with a sachet of the shelf-life extenders.

The food protected by the shelf-life extender can be vegetarian ornon-vegetarian. Vegetarian foods include produce, grains, dairy productsand processed foods made from produce, grains, and dairy products.Non-vegetarian foods include land dwelling animals and sea food. Processfoods include all kind of canned foods and radiated foods.

Produce whose shelf-life can be extended with the shelf-life extendersdisclosed herein include edible seeds, cereals, staple foods, legumes,vegetables, climacteric and non-climacteric fruits, leafy & stemvegetables, Citrus fruits, carpels, berries, drupes, melons, pears,tropical fruits, flower vegetables, cruciferous vegetables, fruitvegetables, green, leafy vegetables, seed vegetables, root vegetables,tubers, stem vegetables and fungi foods.

Processed foods whose shelf-life can be extended with the shelf-lifeextenders disclosed herein include dishes and preparations includingappetizers, condiments, confectionary, convenient food, desserts, dips,pastes and spreads, dried food, fast foods, fermented foods, bakedfoods, salads, sandwiches, sauces, snack foods, soups, stews and a largenumber of peasant and cuisine foods.

Liquid foods whose shelf-life can be extended with the shelf-lifeextenders include milk, fruit and vegetable juices, extracts, softdrinks and alcoholic drinks such as beers, wines and distilled spirits.

The shelf-extenders disclosed herein can be used for extendingshelf-life of meat such as chicken, mutton, pork, beef, camel, horse,emu, alligator, crocodile, turtle, ostrich, duck, deer, zebra, waterbuffalo, and rabbit.

The shelf-extenders disclosed herein can be used for extendingshelf-life of fish and other sea food such as basa, flounder, hake,scup, smelt, rainbow trout, hardshell clam, blue crab, peekytoe crab,spanner crab, cuttlefish, eastern oyster, Pacific oyster, anchovy,herring, lingcod, moi, orange roughy, Atlantic Ocean perch, LakeVictoria perch, yellow perch, European oyster, sea urchin, Atlanticmackerel, Sardines, Black sea bass, European sea bass, hybrid stripedbass, bream, cod, drum, haddock, hoki, Alaska pollock, rockfish, pinksalmon, snapper, tilapia, turbot, walleye, lake whitefish, wolffish,surf clam, cockle, Jonah crab, snow crab, crayfish, bay scallop, Chinesewhite shrimp, sablefish, Atlantic salmon, coho salmon, skate, Dungenesscrab, king crab, blue mussel, greenshell mussel, pink shrimp, escolar,chinook salmon, chum salmon, American shad, Arctic char, carp, catfish,dory, grouper, halibut, monkfish, pompano, Dover sole, sturgeon,tilefish, wahoo, yellowtail, abalone, conch, stone crab, Americanlobster, spiny lobster, octopus, black tiger shrimp, freshwater shrimp,gulf shrimp, Pacific white shrimp, squid, barramundi, cusk, dogfish,kingklip, mahimahi, opah, mako shark, swordfish, albacore tuna,yellowfin tuna, geoduck clam, squat lobster, sea scallop, rock shrimp,barracuda, Chilean sea bass, cobia, croaker, eel, blue marlin, mullet,sockeye salmon and bluefin tuna.

The shelf-extenders disclosed herein can be used for extendingshelf-life of extracts and fresh juices such as juices or extract ofapple, beet, cantaloupe, carrot, celery, cherry, cranberry, coconutwater, cucumber, grape, grapefruit, guava, honeydew, kiwifruit,lemonade, lemon, lingonberry, lychee, mango, melon, orange, papaya,pineapple, pomegranate, prune, raspberry, spinach, strawberry,sugarcane, tomato, turnip, fresh and dried herbs and spices and a numberof vegetables.

While not limited to theory, it is hypothesized that the inventiveshelf-life extenders do so by one or more of the following: reducingoxidation and dehydration, blocking, inhibiting or making inactive theenzymes responsible for degradation of foods, reacting with planthormones, complexing with biochemicals including those give color tofoods such as chlorophyll, anthocyanin, carotenoids, hemoglobin andother naturally occurring coloring agents, and/or have antifungal andantibacterial properties.

For control release of shelf-life extenders, the shelf-life extenderscan be microencapsulated or sealed in sachets with proper barriermaterial. A sachet can have an adhesive layer, preferably that of apressure sensitive adhesive, on one side so it can be applied inside thefood container and a barrier film with a pressure adhesive on the otherside of the sachet, so the barrier film can be removed to activate thesachet.

For optimum performance, the concentration of shelf-life extenders, aswell as the time and temperature of exposure of foods to shelf-lifeextenders, are optionally and preferably controlled. Highconcentrations, high temperature and/or over exposure over a longer timeare preferably avoided. High dose can damage the foods. Lowerconcentrations, low temperatures and/or under exposure over a shortertime are preferably avoided. Low, or insufficient, dose may not beeffective in extending shelf-life of foods. The concentration of ashelf-life extender to be used will depend on the type of the food andnature of the shelf-life extenders. Thick skinned produce and thosefoods which are less permeable to the shelf-life extenders will requirea longer time or higher concentration of the shelf-life extenders. Thinproduce such as leafy and flowery produce such as parsley, broccoli andflowers will require shorter time of exposure and low concentrations ofthe shelf-life extenders. Depending upon nature of a shelf-life extenderand nature of the food, (i) the concentration of a shelf-life extenderin vapor phase can vary from 1 ppb to saturated with vapor of theshelf-life extenders or from 1 ng/ml to 500 mg/ml and from 0.01% to 50%in solution in water or other liquid medium, (ii) time for the treatmentcan vary from 1 minute to a few days and (iii) temperature can vary from5° C. to 50° C. When a sachet is used, the concentration of theshelf-life extender can be below 1 ppb and exposure time can be forweeks to a few years for food like grains. When added in a liquid foodsuch as milk and juices or in processed food such as cheeses and cannedfood, the concentration of the shelf-life extender can vary from 1 ppbto 10%.

Unsaturated shelf-life extenders, having an alkene bond, are moreeffective and stronger in extending shelf-life of foods than thecorresponding saturated homologs. For example, allyl isothiocyanate ismore effective than ethyl isothiocyanate in preventing fungus and2-cyclohexen-1-one is more effective in delaying the ripening oftomatoes. The term ripening also includes over ripening.

Higher humidity helps in reducing the pre-exposure treatment time andconcentration of the preservative. The humidity can vary from ambienthumidity to 100% relatively humidity. The humidity requirement willdepend on food. Ambient humidity can be enough for fumigation of drygrains, herbs and spices while produce may require higher humidity.Depending upon the food, the humidity during the treatment of a foodwith shelf-life extenders can vary from 1 to 100% relative humidity. Asproduce perspire, the relative humidity can vary during the treatment.Particularly preferred is a humidity above about 50% relative humidity.

The shelf-life extenders can be added in semi solid foods, gels, foodscontaining water, process foods, dishes, cuisines, peasant and cannedfoods to extend their shelf-life.

The shelf-life extenders can be added in can be added in non-food itemssuch as inks, paints and polymers latexes to prevent or minimize fungus.

The shelf-life extenders can be coated, e.g., by spraying non-food solidsurfaces to prevent or minimize fungus or other microbial growth such asthat of bacteria and viruses. The terms prevent and minimize usedinterchangeably herein.

The inventive shelf-life extenders can be used alone or it can be addedin edible coatings for foods. The inventive shelf-life extender mayfunction as a co-preservative by mixing with preservatives commonly usedin the art or reported in the literature as FDA approved and currentlyused.

The shelf-life extenders can be used as fumigants for the fumigation ofgrains, legumes, nuts, fruits, dry fruits, herbs and other produce or asco-fumigants.

The shelf-life extenders can be used in pre-harvest applications such asherbicide, insecticide, and pesticides.

Studies demonstrating the effectiveness of the inventive shelf-lifeextenders of a variety of foods with isothiocyanates, chelate ligands,cyclic ketones and boronic acids with the results presented in Tables1-6. All studies were conducted at a room temperature of about 25° C. Todetermine the effectiveness of a shelf-life extender, a control samplewhich was untreated with any shelf-life extenders, was tested identicalto the test samples. Most of the foods changed color or texture. Allstudies in those Examples of Tables 1-6 were conducted in closed plasticor glass containers. Containers, such as plastic containers, without orwith lids having holes can be used if it is advantageous to let excessmoisture escape or to prevent condensation of moisture released by someproduce.

The following chemicals were also frequently used for extendingshelf-life of a variety of foods and found effective to a greater orlesser extent for controlling one or more spoilage criteria mentioned inExample 9: Acetylacetone, allyl isothiocyanate, benzyl ether,2-butoxyethanol, coumarin, cycloheptanone, cyclohexanone,2-cyclohexen-1-one, cyclopentanone, dimethyl carbonate, dimethylmaleate, dimethyl malonate, ethylenediamine, hydrogen sulfide,4-hydroxy-4-methyl-2-pentanone, 2-methyl-8-quinolinol,2-methylcyclohexanone, 4-methylcyclohexanone, 1-methyl-1-cyclopentene,methyl cyclopentanone-2-carboxylate, and resorcinol.

Delayed or Prevention of Fungus Growth on Produce

On a control sample of blueberries, fungus was observed within 3 dayswhile no fungus was observed even on the 73^(rd) day on the sampleexposed to the vapor of cyclohexanone from a sachet. Similar resultswere observed with 2-methylcyclohexanone, allyl isothiocyanate, amixture of allyl isothiocyanate and cyclohexanone, phenylboronic acid(Examples 22, 91, 94, 95, 117, 138, and 165).

Similarly, the fungus growth was either prevented or significantlydelayed on strawberries (Examples 58, 115, 139 & 163), raspberries(Examples 49, 50, 93 & 123), blackberries (Example 169), and lychee(Examples 42 & 98) with allyl isothiocyanate, phenylboronic acid,acetylacetone, 2-methylcyclohexanone, and pieces of ginger. Othershelf-life extenders were also tested with berries.

On a control sample of carrots, fungus started growing within 14 days,while no fungus was observed on the sample soaked in daikon juice(Example 164) under identical conditions. Baby carrots were also testedwith cyclohexanone and allyl isothiocyanate as well as solutions ofdaikon juice, ginger juice and horseradish juice.

On a control sample of cherries, fungus was observed within 2 days whileno fungus was observed on the 7^(th) day on the sample exposed to thevapor of allyl isothiocyanate with 100% humidity for one hour (Example24).

On a control sample of young-skinned coconuts, fungus was observedwithin 11 days, while no fungus was observed on the sample with a sachetof cyclohexanone at 25 days (Example 103).

On a control sample of cucumbers, fungus was observed within 5 days,while no fungus was observed on the 19^(th) day on the sample soaked inan aqueous solution of allyl isothiocyanate (Example 31). On a similarsample of cucumbers, fungus started growing within 4 days, while nofungus was observed on the 21^(st) day on the samples exposed tocyclohexanone vapor (Example 104) or 1-methylcyclopentene vapor (Example116).

On a control sample of ginger, fungus was observed within 12 days, whileno fungus was observed at 37 days when pre-exposed to the vapor ofbenzyl ether (Example 146). Ginger was also tested with cyclohexanone,2-cyclohexen-1-one, acetylacetone, allyl isothiocyanate and ethylisothiocyanate and found effective. Both the pre-exposure method andsachet method were used. Ginger was also kept in closed as well as opencontainers.

On a control sample of guar, fungus was observed within 6 days, while nofungus was observed on the sample exposed to allyl isothiocyanate vaporeven on the 40^(th) day (Examples 38 & 39). While the treated guar didlose its green color slightly but it remained crisp.

On a control sample of horseradish, fungus was observed within 6 days,while no fungus was observed at 19 days when pre-exposed to the vapor ofacetylacetone or cyclohexanone (Example 121 & 97). Other preservativestested with horseradish include: 2-cyclohexen-1-one, allylisothiocyanate and benzyl ether.

On a control sample of karela (Indian bitter guard), fungus andyellowing was observed within 7 days, while no fungus was observed onthe sample exposed to allyl isothiocyanate vapor at 33 days (Example41).

On a control sample of mandarins, fungus was observed within 14 days,while no fungus was observed at 30 days when soaked in ginger juicesolution (Examples 167). Similar results were observed when a piece ofwasabi was used as the preservative (Example 168). Mandarins were alsoexposed to 2-butoxyethanol, dimethyl carbonate, dimethyl maleate,dimethyl malonate, 2-cyclohexen-1-one, and 4-hydroxy-2-butanone and bydipping/rinsing in solution of daikon juice, ginger juice, horseradishjuice and allyl isothiocyanate.

On a control sample of white pearl onions, fungus was observed within 8days, while no fungus was observed at 48 days when a sachet ofacetylacetone was placed in a glass jar with 100% relative humidity(Examples 124 & 125). Other preservatives tested on onions include:acetylacetone, cyclohexanone, allyl isothiocyanate, ethylisothiocyanate, soaking in aqueous ammonium phosphate solution. Similarresults were seen with phenyl isothiocyanate (Examples 88 & 87). Thefungus growth was either prevented or significantly delayed with thesame preservatives on red and yellow pearl onions.

On a control sample of parval (Trichosanthes dioica, also known aspointed gourd), fungus and yellowing were observed within 9 days, whileno fungus was observed on the sample exposed to allyl isothiocyanatevapor at 16 days (Examples 46, 75 & 76).

On a control sample of snow peas, fungus started growing within 6 days,while no fungus was observed on the 11^(th) day on the sample with ahydrogen sulfide (Himalayan salt) sachet (Example 159). Similar resultswere seen with a sample of snow peas exposed to a piece of ginger(Example 166). Snow peas were also tested with cyclohexanone, daikonpiece, ginger piece, horseradish piece, hydrogen sulfide, allylisothiocyanate, 1-methyl-1-cyclopentene, and 2-cyclohexen-1-one (Example160).

On a control sample of red ripe tomato, fungus was observed within 13days, while no fungus was observed at 29 days when exposed to vapor of2-butoxyethanol (Example 148). Red tomatoes were also tested with2-butoxyethanol, dimethyl carbonate, dimethyl maleate, dimethylmalonate, 2-cyclohexen-1-one, and 4-hydroxy-2-butanone.

Delayed Fungus Growth on Breads, Dairy, Legumes

On a control sample of puri, an Indian fried bread, fungus was observedwithin 5 days while no fungus was observed even on the 70^(th) day on asample which was pre-exposed to vapor of allyl isothiocyanate (Example48) and cyclohexanone (Example 100).

Similarly, the fungus growth was either prevented or significantlydelayed on Indian millet bread, Indian wheat bread (roti) (Examples 101,53 & 141) and cheesecake (Example 99) with cyclohexanone, allylisothiocyanate and ammonium carbamate in a sachet or pre-exposure totheir vapors.

On a control sample of Monterey cheese, fungus was observed within 7days, while no fungus was observed after 10 days (Examples 45) onMonterey Cheese or Paneer (Indian cottage cheese) (Example 12) with asachet of allyl isothiocyanate. Similarly, the fungus growth was eitherprevented or significantly delayed with cyclohexanone with Montereycheese (Example 102).

On a control sample of raw cheese, fungus was observed within 6 days,while no fungus was observed at 24 days on mozzarella cheese whenpre-exposed to the vapor of 2-cyclohexen-1-one (Example 109).

Similar results were seen with allyl isothiocyanate and acetylacetone onraw milk ricotta cheese (Example 122) as well as cheddar cheese (Example51). Acetylacetone, allyl isothiocyanate and cyclohexanone delayed thegrowth of fungus on homemade Farmer's cheese (Example 32, 96 and 120).Other raw milk cheeses tested with preservatives include: Colby, gouda,meadowrella, and Swiss. Cyclohexanone and 1-methyl-1-cyclopentene werealso tested as shelf-life extenders.

On a control sample of fresh shelled peanuts, fungus was observed within5 days, while no fungus was observed on the sample treated with allylisothiocyanate at 8 days (Example 54).

On a control sample of boiled fresh peanuts, fungus was observed within7 days, while no fungus was observed on the sample with a sachet ofcyclohexanone at 16 days (Example 105). Peanuts were treated withcyclohexanone, benzyl ether, coumarin, cycloheptanone, cyclopentanone,2-methylcyclohexanone, 4-methylcyclohexanone, methylcyclopentanone-2-carboxylate, 2-methyl-8-quinolinol,1-nitroso-2-naphthol, 4-nitrosophenol, 8-quinolinol, resorcinol,ammonium acetate, ammonium carbamate, ammonium carbonate, hydrogensulfide, daikon piece, and horseradish piece.

On a control sample of fresh, raw peanuts, fungus was observed within 5days, while no fungus was observed on the sample with a sachet ofammonium carbamate at 45 days (Example 142). Similarly, fungus wassignificantly delayed or prevented with a sachet of allyl isothiocyanate(Example 33).

On a control sample of aqueous gel of gelatin (a food thickener), funguswas observed within 9 days, while no fungus was observed even on the47^(th) day with allyl isothiocyanate (Examples 34 & 35). The fungusgrowth was either prevented or significantly delayed as well in guar gumand starch (Examples 37, 56 & 57).

On a control sample of tofu, fungus was observed within 6 days, while nofungus was observed at 9^(th) day when exposed to a sachet of allylisothiocyanate (Example 60). Cyclohexanone, hydrogen sulfide, allylisothiocyanate and ammonium carbonate were effective as shelf-lifeextenders for tofu.

On a control sample of sprouted mung (Vigna radiata) flooded with water,fungus was observed within 7 days, while no fungus was observed at 21days with a sachet or a drop of allyl isothiocyanate (Example 55 & 173),a mixture of allyl isothiocyanate and cyclohexanone (Example 174) or adrop of 2-cyclohexen-1-one (Example 110). Similar results were observedwith a mixture of allyl isothiocyanate and cyclohexanone.

On a control sample of mixed legumes which remained in water, fungus wasobserved within 11 days, while no fungus was observed at 17 days withallyl isothiocyanate (sachet or pre-exposed to vapor with humidity)(Examples 43, 44, 89 & 172).

Shelf-life extenders which are exemplary for extending shelf-lifeinclude cyclohexanone, allyl isothiocyanate, hydrogen sulfide, ammoniumcarbamate, benzyl ether, 2-butoxyethanol, n-butyl-lactate, butyramide,camphor, cinnamyl alcohol, cycloheptanone, cyclohexanone,2-cyclohexen-1-one, cyclopentanone, dibutyl adipate, diethyl-tartrate,diethyl malate, acetylacetone, diethyl malonate, diethyl oxalate,diethyl succinate, diethylene glycol monohydrate, dimethyl carbonate,hydrogen sulfide, dimethyl maleate, dimethyl malonate, dimethylsulfoxide, 2-ethoxyethanol, 2-ethyl-1,3-hexanediol,4-hydroxy-2-butanone, 4-hydroxy-4-methyl-2-pentanone,5-hydroxy-2-pentanone, (±)-isoborneol, (−)-menthone, (±)-menthol,(−)-menthol, 2-methoxyethanol, 2-methylcyclohexanone,4-methylcyclohexanone, naphthalene, 1-nitroso-2-naphthol,2-phenoxyethanol, 4-phenyl-2-butanone, (−)-β-pinene, 8-quinolinol,salicylaldoxime, ethylenediamine, and acetylacetone.

Delayed Ripening and Keeping Produce and Leafy Vegetables Green Longer

On a control sample of avocados, spoiled flesh was observed on the7^(th) day of cutting open the produce. Spoiled flesh was observed onthe 9^(th)-11^(th) day of cutting open the produce that was exposed toacetylacetone vapor (Example 127 & 128). Spoiling of the flesh withdevelopment of fungus, was significantly delayed with preservatives suchas allyl isothiocyanate, cyclohexanone, 2-cyclohexen-1-one and a mixtureof allyl isothiocyanate and cyclohexanone (Examples 77, 78, 107, 108,113 & 171).

On a control sample of small bananas, ripening was observed within 18days, while no ripening was observed at 21 days when exposed to vapor ofethylenediamine (Example 132). Bananas were also tested withcyclohexanone, hydrogen sulfide, ammonium carbamate, cycloheptanone,cyclopentanone, 2-methylcyclohexanone, 4-methylcyclohexanone,(±)-camphor, (−)-menthone, allyl isothiocyanate, acetylacetone and apiece of wasabi.

The ripening, as judged from green-to-yellow (or red) color-change, ofgreen chili peppers (Example 151) and Jalapeño peppers (Example 153) wasdelayed by pre-dipping into a 10% solution of choline chloride followedby drying.

A control sample of a green tomato turned red on the 10^(th) day whilegreen tomatoes pre-exposed to vapor of cyclohexanone took 18 days toturn red (Example 106). Color change from green-to-red was alsosignificantly delayed with acetylacetone (Example 126).

On a control sample of mangoes, ripening occurred within 16 days, whilemangos treated with a sachet of dimethyl maleate did not ripen until 23days (Example 156). Similar results were seen when exposed to vapors of2-ethoxyethanol (Examples 157).

On a control sample of papaya, ripening occurred within 7 days, whilepapaya pre-exposed to the vapor of 2-cyclohexen-1-one was delayed by atleast 11 days (Example 112). Papaya was also tested with cyclohexanone,acetylacetone, dimethyl maleate as well as a mixture of cyclohexanoneand acetylacetone.

The delay of ripening and turning red from green was achieved fortindora (Coccinia grandis, the ivy gourd) (Examples 15, 59 & 170) withallyl isothiocyanate as well as a mixture of allyl isothiocyanate andcyclohexanone. Tindora was treated with cyclohexanone, daikon piece,ginger piece, horseradish piece, hydrogen sulfide, allyl isothiocyanate,wasabi, 2-butoxyethanol, dimethyl carbonate, dimethyl maleate, dimethylmalonate, 2-cyclohexen-1-one, 4-hydroxy-2-butanone,1-methyl-1-cyclopentene, benzyl ether, n-butyl lactate, butyramide,camphor, cinnamyl alcohol, cycloheptanone, cyclohexanone,cyclopentanone, dibutyl adipate, diethyl L-tartrate, diethyl malate,acetylacetone, diethyl malonate, diethyl oxalate, diethyl succinate,diethylene glycol monohydrate ether, dimethyl sulfoxide,2-ethoxyethanol, 2-ethyl-1,3-hexanediol, 4-hydroxy-4-methyl-2-sentanone,5-hydroxy-2-pentanone, (±)-isoborneol, (−)-menthone, (±)-menthol,(−)-menthol, 2-methoxyethanol, 2-methylcyclohexanone,4-methylcyclohexanone, naphthalene, 1-nitroso-2-naphthol,2-phenoxyethanol, 4-phenyl-2-butanone, (−)-β-pinene, 8-quinolinol, andsalicylaldoxime. Tindora has also been dipped in allyl isothiocyanatesolution which demonstrated shelf-life extension.

Expedited Ripening

On a control sample of mango, ripening occurred around 14 days, while ona sample exposed to dimethyl carbonate, ripening was expedited at 8 days(Example 155). Similar results were observed with a sachet of2-butoxyethanol (Examples 147).

Keeping Leafy Vegetables Green Longer

Bok choy (Example 149) remained green longer than the respective controlsamples when pre-dipped into a solution of 22% choline chloride.

On a control sample of fresh green chickpeas, a green-to-yellow colorchange was observed within 7 days, while no color changed was observedat 9 days on a sample treated with an allyl isothiocyanate sachet(Example 30).

On a control sample of green coriander, browning, yellowing, and/orwilting was observed within 11 days, while a sample exposed toacetylacetone vapor remained green past 21 days (Example 130). Spoilageof coriander was significantly delayed by the vapors of allylisothiocyanate, cyclohexanone, 2-cyclohexen-1-one as well as soaking in1% solution of mandelic acid (Examples 11, 92, 114 and 161).

On a control sample of limes, color change from green to brown on theskin was observed within 6 days, while no color change was observed onthe sample sprayed with a 2% phenylboronic acid solution in water(Example 137) at room temperature after 10 days.

On a control sample of green methi (fenugreek), wilting was observedwithin 9 days, while a sample exposed to allyl isothiocyanate vaporremained fresh and green at 30 days (Example 83).

On a control sample of green parsley, browning, yellowing and/or wiltingwas observed within 7 days while a sample exposed to acetylacetone vaporremained fresh and green at 21 days (Example 119). Browning, yellowingand/or wilting was significantly delayed with ethylenediamine (Example131). In addition, pre-dipping/rinsing in 22% solution of cholinechloride has delayed the color change in parsley (Example 150).

In order to keep leafy vegetables green longer, cyclohexanone, daikonpiece, ginger piece, horseradish piece, hydrogen sulfide, allylisothiocyanate, acetylacetone, ethylenediamine, wasabi, 2-butoxyethanol,dimethyl carbonate, dimethyl maleate, dimethyl malonate,2-cyclohexen-1-one, 4-hydroxy-2-butanone, and 1-methyl-1-cyclopentenewere tested. Roots of coriander were dipped in the following solutions:magnesium phosphate dibasic, propyl gallate, ammonium dihydrogenphosphate, calcium acetylacetonate, diethylene glycol monoethyl ether,ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid-sodium salt, malic acid, mandelic acidand pyrogallic acid.

Delayed Color Change of Flowery Vegetables

On a control sample of broccoli, color change from green-to-yellow wasobserved within 5 days, while a sample treated to vapors of allylisothiocyanate remained green at 16 days (Example 25 & 27). Similarresults were observed when the sachet method was used (Example 26).Color change was also significantly delayed when broccoli was dippedinto a 5% solution of choline chloride (Example 152).

On a control sample of cauliflower, fungus was observed at 2 days whileno fungus was observed at 4 days when a control sample was exposed tothe vapors of allyl isothiocyanate (Example 29).

Flowery vegetables were demonstrated to have an extended shelf-life whentreated with shelf-life preservatives selected from cyclohexanone,ammonium carbamate, ammonium carbonate, cycloheptanone, cyclopentanone,2-methylcyclohexanone, 4-methylcyclohexanone, (±)-camphor, (−)-menthone,allyl isothiocyanate, acetylacetone, 1-methyl-1-cyclopentene, and2-cyclohexen-1-one and hydrogen sulfide.

Delaying or Prevention of Sprouting/Germination of Tubers and Grains

On a control sample of presoaked and strained mixed legumes germinationwas observed within 4 days, while no germination was observed at 21 daysafter exposure to vapors of allyl isothiocyanate from a sachet or insolution (Examples 66, 67, 68 & 111). Similarly, the germination wasalso delayed or prevented with 2-cyclohexen-1-one.

On a control sample of grains which were mainly unhusked rice and softwhite wheat, germination/sprouting was observed within 2 days, while nogermination/sprouting was observed after 10 days on a sample treatedwith a 2% phenylboronic spray (Example 140).

On a control sample of pre-soaked and strained unshelled rice,germination was observed within 3 days, while no germination or funguswas observed at 15 days with exposure to a sachet of allylisothiocyanate (Example 71). Similarly, germination or fungus wasdelayed or prevented with mixed legumes and sprouted legumes.

On a control sample of flooded shelled peanuts, germination and/orfungus was observed within 5 days, while no germination and/or funguswas observed for 8 days the sample was exposed to a drop of allylisothiocyanate in flooded water. Germination and/or fungus was alsoeither prevented or significantly delayed with similar conditions inunshelled peanuts (Example 62). The shelf-life of shelled and unshelledpeanuts was also extended with cyclohexanone, 2-cyclohexen-1-one and1-methyl-1-cyclopentene.

On a control sample of sprouted garlic, the growth of sprouts continuedwhile no further growth of sprouts was observed on a sample exposed tovapor of allyl isothiocyanate (Example 82).

On a control sample of potatoes, sprouting was observed within 8 dayswhile no sprouting was observed at 48 days when exposed to a sachet ofacetylacetone (Example 129). Similarly, sprouting was either preventedor significantly delayed on various types of potatoes when exposed toallyl isothiocyanate vapor or a sachet comprising allyl isothiocyanate(Examples 79-81) as well as by pre-dipping into 10% choline chloridesolution (Example 154). Other preservatives effective at extending theshelf-life of potatoes included cyclohexanone, ethyl isothiocyanate,phenyl isothiocyanate, soaking in water and an ammonium phosphatesolution.

Keeping Grains and Legumes from Disintegration with Water

On a control sample of pre-soaked and strained white rice,softening/mushiness and an odor were observed within 5 days while nosoftening/mushiness or a bad order was observed at 21 days with apre-soaked white rice exposed to as solution or a sachet of allylisothiocyanate (Example 72 & 73). Similar results were observed withpre-soaked soft white wheat and wild rice (Examples 63, 64, 69, & 70).

Other tubers we tested for preventing sprouting and fungus with theshelf-life extenders include turnip, ginger, yautia eddoes (Americantaro), beet, carrot, garlic, ruby small potatoes, yellow mini potatoes,white criollo potato, gold potatoes, red potatoes, russet potatoes,sweet potatoes, red onion, yellow onion, white onion, gold pearl onion,red pearl onion, white pearl onion and shallots.

Liquid Foods

On a control sample of pasteurized milk, curdling was observed within 2days, while no curdling was observed on a sample comprising one to twodrops of allyl isothiocyanate in 200 g of milk at 28 days (Example 19).Similar results were observed with additional drops of ethylisothiocyanate (Example 17). Curdling was either prevented orsignificantly delayed as well in fat-free milk with3-chlorophenylboronic acid (Example 135) and ethyl isothiocyanate inwhole milk (Example 86), and fat-free milk.

Other preservatives tested with both pasteurized whole and fat-free milkwhich delayed curdling of milk include: 4-biphenylboronic acid, boricacid, 4-bromophenylboronic acid, butylboronic acid,4-tert-butylphenylboronic acid, 3-chlorophenylboronic acid,3,5-dimethylphenylboronic acid, 4-(methoxycarbonyl)phenylboronic acid,3-methoxyphenylboronic acid, 2-methylphenylboronic acid, andphenylboronic acid.

On a control sample of raw cow milk, curdling was observed within 3days, while no curdling was observed on a sample with one to two dropsof allyl isothiocyanate in 200 ml of milk as well as with ethylisothiocyanate at 24 days (Example 16). Other preservatives tested withraw cow milk and raw goat milk which delayed curdling include: benzylisothiocyanate, butyl isothiocyanate, phenyl isothiocyanate, p-tolylisothiocyanate, 4-biphenylboronic acid, 4-bromophenylboronic acid,butylboronic acid, 4-tert-butylphenylboronic acid,3,5-dimethylphenylboronic acid, 4-(methoxycarbonyl)-phenylboronic acid,2-methoxyphenylboronic acid, 3-methoxyphenylboronic acid and3-chlorophenylboronic acid.

On a control sample of a mixture of beaten yogurt and pasteurized milkmixture, curdling was observed within 2 days, while no curdling wasobserved on a sample with one drop of allyl isothiocyanate at 16 days(Example 18).

On a control sample of raw milk yogurt, fungus was observed within 3days, while no fungus was observed at 5 days with 4-bromophenylboronicacid added (Example 134). Other preservatives which demonstratedextended shelf-life with raw milk yogurt include: allyl isothiocyanate,ethyl isothiocyanate (Example 84), butylboronic acid,4-tert-butylphenylboronic acid and 3-chlorophenylboronic acid.

Keeping Cold-Pressed Fruit Juices Fresh Longer

On a control sample of fresh cold-pressed orange juice, fungus wasobserved within 4 days, while no fungus was observed at 27 days with adrop of 3-methoxyphenylboronic acid (Example 136). On a control sampleof fresh cold-pressed green grape juice, fungus was observed within 7days, while no fungus was observed at 30 days with a drop of allylisothiocyanate in the juice (Example 36). Fungus growth was eitherprevented or significantly delayed as well in fresh cold pressedpomegranate juice, blackberry juice, orange juice, red grape juice,apple juice, blueberry juice and honeydew juice with allylisothiocyanate (Examples 14, 20, 23, 40, 47, 52, and 65). Preservativestested which were effective in extending freshness of cold press freshjuices include butyl isothiocyanate, phenyl isothiocyanate,4-bromophenylboronic acid, 3-chlorophenylboronic acid,3,5-dimethylphenylboronic acid, 4-(methoxycarbonyl)-phenylboronic acid,2-methoxyphenylboronic acid, 4-biphenylboronic acid and butylboronicacid.

On a control sample of fresh cold pressed tomato juice, fungus wasobserved within 3 days, while no fungus was observed at 20 days with adrop of allyl isothiocyanate in the juice (Example 61). Ethylisothiocyanate and 4-tert-butylphenylboronic acid were also demonstratedto improve shelf-life on tomato juice (Example 85 & 133). The fungusgrowth was either prevented or significantly delayed as well in freshcold pressed carrot juice, red cabbage juice, and beet juice (Examples28, 21, 13). Other fresh, cold pressed vegetable juices demonstratingimproved shelf-life with allyl isothiocyanate include tomatillo, lime,and green cabbage.

Color Loss of Meat and Fish

On a control sample of ground beef a loss of pinkish fleshy color wasobserved within 2 days. A sample with a sachet of ammonium carbamate hadlost less fleshy pinkish color, on 3^(rd) day. Similar results wereobserved with ground chicken and tilapia filets (Examples 143-145).Cyclohexanone, hydrogen sulfide, allyl isothiocyanate and ammoniumcarbonate also demonstrated improvements with meat and fish.

Keeping Flowers Longer

On a control sample of cut lilies with stems dipped in water, petalsbegan to turn brown within 4 days and its petals had fallen by 12 days,while on a sample dipped in acetylacetone solution was still fresh andalive at 12 days (Example 118). Other preservative tested with flowersinclude: cyclohexanone, 2-cyclohexen-1-one, 1-methyl-1-cyclopentene,3-methoxyphenylboronic acid, 3-chlorophenylboronic acid, benzyl ether,choline chloride and hydrogen sulfide. Flowers can be exposed to verylow concentration, e.g., in ppm, of vapor of the shelf-life extenders tokeep them fresher longer. Other flowers demonstrated improved shelf-lifeinclude: marigold, salvia, vinca, daffodils, gerbera, roses, carnations,pompoms, alstroemeria, baby's breath, hydrangea, large tree leave, smalltree leave, green vines, lavender, small purple and red garden flowers,walnut leaves, clovers, mug wort, pokeweed, chamomile, Allium, yarrow,bee balm, daisy, tradescantia, malva and clematis multi blue.

Dehydration/Wilting of Radish

On a control sample of radish, dehydration/wilting was observed within 5days, while less dehydration/wilting was observed on a sample exposed to(−)-menthone vapor (Example 162).

Rising of Dough

On a control sample of freshly prepared dough, rising could continuouslybe observed throughout the day. However, freshly prepared dough withallyl isothiocyanate added did not rise (Example 74). While the percentof allyl isothiocyanate was not optimized the results indicate thatallyl isothiocyanate is capable of killing yeast and may also kill otherbacteria and viruses.

Color Change of Sliced Apple

The control sample of cut pieces of Granny Smith apple started turningbrown within hours while a sample exposed to hydrogen sulfide producedfrom reaction of humidity of cut apple with Himalayan salt, did not turnbrown even on the 3^(rd) day (Example 158).

List of Types of Foods Whose Shelf-Life can be Extended with theShelf-Life Extenders

The parts of the vegetable plant that can have an extended shelf-lifewhen treated with the shelf-life extenders include those parts that weeat include the leaves, fruit, stems, roots, tubers, seeds, flowers,legumes, edible fungi, edible nuts and seeds, dairy products, eggs,meat, cereals and sea food are considered basic foods. Specific examplesof foods whose shelf-life can be extended with the shelf-life extenderincludes edible seeds, cereals, staple foods, legumes, vegetables,climacteric and non-climacteric fruits, leafy and stem vegetables,Citrus fruits, carpels, berries, drupes, melons, pears, tropical fruits,fruit vegetables, flower vegetables, cruciferous vegetables, green,leafy vegetables, seed vegetables, root vegetables, tuber vegetables,stem vegetables, fungi foods, seafood, dairy products, fresh food,processed foods, yogurt and curd, peasant foods, cuisines, baked foods,yeast, fruit juices, canned and bottled foods and liquid foods.

Edible seeds include cereals such as corn, wheat, rice, etc.; legumessuch as beans, peas, lentils, etc.; and nuts. Oil seeds such as peanut,cotton seed, sunflower, flaxseed, rapeseed including canola oil, andsesame are often pressed to produce oils.

Cereals are the seeds of certain species of grass. Maize/corn, wheat,and rice account for about half of the calories consumed by people everyyear. Grains can be ground into flour for bread, cake, noodles, andother food products.

A staple food is a food that is eaten routinely and in such quantitiesthat it constitutes a dominant portion of a standard diet, supplying alarge fraction of the needs for energy-rich materials and generally asignificant proportion of the intake of other nutrients as well. Moststaple plant foods are derived either from cereals such as wheat,barley, rye, maize, or rice; or starchy tubers or root vegetables suchas potatoes, yams, taro, and cassava. Other staple foods include pulsessuch as dried legumes, sago derived from the pith of the sago palm tree,and fruits such as breadfruit and plantains.

Legumes include beans and lentils or generally pulses. Well-knownlegumes include alfalfa, clover, peas, beans, lentils, mungs, lupins,mesquite, carob, soybeans, red beans, black eye bean, and chickpeas.

Vegetables are commonly eaten as food. These include root vegetablessuch as potatoes and carrots, bulbs such as the onion family, leafvegetables such as spinach and lettuce, stem vegetables such as bambooshoots and asparagus, and inflorescence or flowery vegetables such asglobe artichokes or broccoli and other vegetables such as cabbage orcauliflower.

Climacteric are those fruits which continue to ripen after harvestingand non-climacteric fruits are those fruits which do not ripen furtherafter harvest. Examples of climacteric fruits are apple, banana, mango,papaya, pear, apricot, peach, plum, avocado, guava, passion fruit, blueberry and cantaloupe. The examples of non-climacteric are grape, lime,lemon, orange, raspberry, strawberry, cashew nut, pineapple, watermelon, pomegranate and lychee.

Leafy vegetables include lettuce, cabbages such as Chinese cabbage,Brussels sprouts, rhubarb, celery, spinach, chard, kale, endive,escarole, green onions, chicory, radicchio, and other leafy greens, stemvegetables include asparagus, kohlrabi, and fennel and floral vegetablesinclude artichokes, broccoli, and cauliflower. Other leafy produce areamaranth, arugula, beets, basil, chervil, chives, cilantro, cress,endive, fennel, garlic, lavender, mint, mustard, nutmeg, onion, parsley,coriander, fenugreek, radicchio, radish, spinach, sorrel and mint.

Citrus fruits are characterized by thick skins, aromatic oils, andsegmented flesh. They are abundant in vitamin C. The most common Citrusfruits are oranges, grapefruits, lemons, limes, tangelos, andtangerines. The flavor of Citrus fruits ranges from very sweet orangesto very tart and sour lemons.

Carpels are semi-transparent pods that contain seeds near the core.Examples are apples such as Red and Golden Delicious, Jonathan andGranny Smith, McIntosh, Rome and Winesap apples.

Berries are highly perishable, tender and fragile. Varieties includeblueberries, raspberries, blackberries, boysenberries and strawberries.Grapes are technically berries that grow in clusters on vines.

Cherries, along with plums, peaches, nectarines and apricots are calleddrupes. Drupes have a central pit enclosing a single seed.

Popular melons are honeydew and cantaloupe or muskmelon. Characterizedby their tan, green, or yellow skin wherein the rind is tough and theflesh is flavorful. The network of seeds in the middle are taken outbefore eating. Unlike sweet melons, watermelons have a smooth, thickgreen skin and are often much larger in size. The seeds are scatteredthroughout the melon. Plums have a firm flesh and range in shades ofgreen, red, and purple.

Pears have a sweet taste and a smooth juicy flesh. Common varieties areBartlett, Bosc, or d'Anjou (small dark red or green). Pears are oftenpicked early, while the flesh is still very firm and grainy.

Tropical fruits are named for the climatic conditions under which theygrow, and include figs, dates, kiwis, mangos, bananas, papayas,pomegranates, passion fruit, pineapple and coconuts. Bananas are high innutrients and are picked green and allowed to ripen during transport.

In flower vegetables, the flower or floret part of the plant and thestems are eaten. Only the tender flesh at the base of each globeartichoke outer leaf is eaten. Artichokes are sometimes considered astem vegetable. Cabbage has thick and waxy leaves.

Allyl isothiocyanate and other isothiocyanates, such as benzylisothiocyanate, sulforaphane and phenylethyl isothiocyanate are foodcomponents. They exist in various produce, especially cruciferousvegetables. Cruciferous or Brassica vegetables are so named because theycome from plants in the family known to botanists and biologists asCruciferae or alternately, Brassicaceae. Many, but not all, commonlyconsumed cruciferous vegetables come from the Brassica genus; examplesinclude broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, collardgreens, kale, kohlrabi, mustard, rutabaga, turnips, bok choy, andChinese cabbage. Examples of other edible crucifers include radish(Raphanus sativus), horseradish (Armoracia rusticana), watercress(Nasturtium officinale), wasabi (Wasabia japonica), and Swiss chard(Beta vulgaris flavescens). We also eat processed food such as yellowmustard condiment in form of paste or sauce wasabi coated nuts,especially soya beans and peanuts and many of the Asian/Indian dishesare sautéed with black/brown mustard seeds. Most of us consume one ormore of these produce in varied amount almost every day. They have tasteof mustards or wasabi.

Avocados have leathery green or black skin with a buttery flavor.Guacamole is a traditional Mexican dip using mashed avocados as the mainingredient. Slicing cucumbers have smooth skins and are long, roundcylinders with a high-water content. Eggplant is a pear-shaped,purple-black vegetable with a glossy skin and firm flesh. Asianeggplant, a slenderer variety, is typically sweeter.

Bell or sweet peppers are named for their shape. All varieties start outgreen, and change colors to red, green, yellow, cream, purple or red asthey ripen. Chili peppers are smaller and hotter. The seeds are thehottest part. Tomatoes are a type of berry, ranging in color from green,to yellow, to bright red.

Butternut, acorn, spaghetti, banana, hubbard, and pumpkin are types ofwinter squash. Crookneck, and zucchini are types of summer squash withsoft skin and smaller seeds that can both be eaten.

The light-green leaves of iceberg lettuce are tightly packed togetherwith the heaviest heads being the most compact. Both romaine and leaflettuce are loosely packed with the leaves growing upward in bunches andtheir edges are slightly ruffled. There are several types of ‘greens’used in cooking, including mustard greens, escarole, and spinach. Theyusually have a more bitter, stronger flavor than the lettuces and arevery high in nutrients.

Seed vegetables include green beans, green legumes, yellow wax beans,Fava Beans, Lima Beans and French haricot verts. They are all eaten inthe pod. Corn and popcorn, grown for its small ears and pointed kernelsthat explode when heated. Once the seed vegetables are picked, theybegin to convert their natural sugars to starch. They lose theirsweetness.

Root vegetables are plants that have a single, large edible root thatextends down into the ground and provides nutrients to the part of theplant above ground. The leaves and root of beets are both edible. Largebeets may have a woody texture. Pickled beets are zesty.Peppery-flavored radishes range in color from bright reds to pale cream,making them a good garnish. When young and fresh, half-white,half-purple turnips range in flavor from very sweet to a little peppery;older ones can be hot and bitter. Carrots contain a large amount ofcarotene, a pigment easily convertible to vitamin A.

Flattened yellow onions are the most common and the least expensive andare used for most recipes and for onion rings. Very round yellow, red,and white onions are less “hot”, somewhat sweeter and crisper. Allvarieties have a pungent flavor and aroma and are used as seasonings.Pearl onions have very small bulbs. Green onions, also called scallions,are common onions pulled when immature. Leeks look like large greenonions. They have the mildest flavor of all onions. Mild-flavoredshallots are shaped like small bulb onions, but separate into cloveswhen broken apart. Garlic is separated into cloves and peeled.

Tubers are enlarged, bulbous roots capable of generating a new plant.They are actually fat, underground stems. Like several of the seedvegetables, these are high in starch. Potatoes are the most popularvegetable and very versatile, able to be prepared by baking, boiling,frying, deep-frying, and microwaving. Sweet potatoes have a darker fleshthan a white potato due to a higher sugar content. The thick skin is notusually eaten. Yams are similar to sweet potatoes, but not as sweet. Itsflesh ranges in color from deep red to creamy white.

Celery has a high-water content and is very crisp. The ‘bunch’ is calleda stalk. An individual piece is called a rib.

The “relish tray” has become standard fare on many tables and buffets.Raw vegetables, including cucumbers that have been made into sweet anddill pickles, and olives; which can be black, green, stuffed, etc.; arehigh in nutrients and very colorful.

Some foods not from animal or plant sources include various ediblefungi, especially mushrooms. Mushrooms are a family of ‘fungi’.Portabella is the largest mushroom with a meaty flavor. Fungi andambient bacteria are used in the preparation of fermented and pickledfoods like leavened bread, alcoholic drinks, cheese, pickles, kombucha,and yogurt.

Seafood is any form of sea life regarded as food by humans. Seafoodprominently includes fish and shellfish. Shellfish include variousspecies of mollusks, crustaceans, and echinoderms.

Dairy products such as milk, yogurt and cheese are fresh and spoilquickly.

Fresh food is food which has not been preserved and has not spoiled yet.For vegetables and fruits, this means that they have been recentlyharvested and treated properly postharvest. For meat, fresh food hasrecently been slaughtered and butchered. For fish, fresh fish has beenrecently caught or harvested and kept cold.

Processed foods include a large number of dishes and preparationsincluding appetizers, condiments, confectionary, convenient food,desserts, dips, pastes and spreads, dried food, fast foods, fermentedfoods, salads, sandwiches, sauces, snack foods, soups, stews and a largenumber of peasant and cuisine foods.

Yogurt is prepared using techniques similar to making curd but thefermentation of the milk is done by adding two specific strains ofbacteria called Lactobacillus bulgaris and Streptococcus thermophilus.Other strains of lactic acid bacteria may also be added. The addition ofthese bacteria makes the product standardized and homogenous. Thisensures both the quality as well as the right quantity of bacteria is inthe yogurt. Also, more of the good bacteria reaches the intestinesalive.

Curd is made by boiling and cooling the milk to 30-40° C. and adding aspoonful of curd. Curd has lactic acid bacteria or Lactobacillus. Thisbacterium multiplies itself in the ambient temperature of 30-40° C. andin few hours ferments the milk to form curd.

Yogurt is a well-known probiotic food. Yogurts contain Lactobacillus andStreptococcus bacteria species. Many different bacteria can be found inyogurt but all yogurts contain the bacteria Lactobacillus bulgaricus andStreptococcus thermophilus. According to the National YogurtAssociation's guidelines, the final products have to contain a minimumof 100 million live cultures per gram. There are many other sources ofhealthy bacteria e.g., fermented foods, such as miso paste, tofu,buttermilk and some pickled vegetables.

Peasant foods are dishes specific to a particular culture, made fromaccessible and inexpensive ingredients, and usually prepared andseasoned to make them more palatable. Peasant and cuisine foods are alsoreferred herein as processed foods.

Many cultures have a recognizable cuisine, a specific set of cookingtraditions using various spices or a combination of flavors unique tothat culture, which evolves over time. Some popular types of ethnicfoods include Italian, French, Japanese, Chinese, American, Thai,African, and Indian.

Baked foods include bread and other food prepared by backing dough ofgrains, such as wheat. Middle East bread, called pita or pocket bread,and Indian breads, call rotis, are exemplary.

Yeast is a form of fungi and it occurs in almost any environment capableof supporting microbes from the skins of fruits to the guts of insectsand mammals to the deep ocean. Yeasts convert, or break down, sugar-richmolecules to produce ethanol and carbon dioxide. Yeasts are very commonin the environment and are often isolated from sugar-rich materials.Yeasts are eukaryotic, single-celled microorganisms classified asmembers of the fungus kingdom. Most yeast reproduces asexually bymitosis and many do so by the asymmetric division process known asbudding.

The yeast species Saccharomyces cerevisiae converts carbohydrates tocarbon dioxide and alcohols in a process known as fermentation. Theproducts of this reaction have been used in baking and the production ofalcoholic beverages. Yeasts vary in regard to the temperature range,such as 4° C. to 45° C., in which they grow best. The cells can survivefreezing under certain conditions.

Cold pressed and other fresh fruit juices have limited shelf-life. Asthe addition of allyl isothiocyanate extends the shelf-life of milk bymany folds, it is highly likely that isothiocyanates such as allylisothiocyanate will extend shelf-life of most fruit juices.

Once opened, most of the canned and bottled liquid and solid foods havelimited shelf-life.

Liquid foods include milk, fruit and vegetable juices, soft drinks,alcoholic drinks such as beers and wines.

Naturally occurring foods are composed a large number of biochemicalsand many, such as enzymes, are very complex molecules. There arethousands of plant and animal derived foods and possibly a greaternumber of processed foods including peasant and cuisine foods. It isimpossible to determine the exact mechanism how the shelf-life of thesefoods is extended with shelf-life extenders disclosed and demonstratedherein. It is likely that the compositions disclosed herein forextending shelf-life of foods are reducing oxidation and dehydration,blocking or making the enzyme inactive, complexing with biochemicalssuch as chlorophyll and hemoglobin, and/or have antifungal andantibacterial activities.

Compositions that can be Used to Extend Shelf-Life of Foods

Shelf-life extenders are preferably selected from a group consisting ofisothiocyanates, ligands, hydrogen sulfide (H₂S), non-aromatic ketones,non-aromatic nitriles, boronic acids and their precursors.

We have been able to extend the shelf-life of a large number of foodswith isothiocyanates, boronic acids, chelating agents and cyclicketones. The shelf-life extenders function by: preventing or minimizinggrowth of fungus, delaying ripening of fruits and vegetable, keepingproduce green longer, reduce wilting, minimizing spoiling of freshjuices, delaying the curdling of milk or by reducing or preventsprouting and germination of tubers and grains.

We have been able to do the above mainly with a small number ofpreservatives such as isothiocyanates, boronic acids, cyclic ketones,chelate ligands or mixture thereof. Particularly preferred shelf-lifeextenders are selected from a group consisting of allyl isothiocyanates,ethyl isothiocyanate, butyl boronic acid, phenyl boronic acid,cyclohexanone, 2-cyclohexene-1-one, acetylacetone or a mixture thereof.

A thiocyanate shares its negative charge approximately equally betweensulfur and nitrogen. As a consequence, thiocyanate can act as anucleophile at either sulfur or nitrogen and is therefore an ambidentateligand. Thiocyanate ion (SCN⁻) can also bridge two (M-SCN-M) or eventhree metals (>SCN— or —SCN<).

In coordination chemistry, ligands are an ion or molecule comprising afunctional group that binds to a central metal ion to form acoordination complex. The bonding with the metal generally involves aformal donation of one or more of the ligand's electron pairs oftenthrough Lewis Bases. The nature of metal-ligand bonding can range fromcovalent to ionic. In general, ligands are viewed as electron donors andthe metals as electron acceptors and are respectively, Lewis bases andLewis acids. A chelate or complex is a compound containing a centralatom bonded with surrounding ligands. Complexes of polydentate ligandsare called chelate complexes. They tend to be more stable than complexesderived from monodentate ligands.

Examples of common ligand classes and specific examples are: Iodide,bromide, sulfide, thiocyanate, chloride, nitrate, azide, fluoride,hydroxide, oxalate, nitrite, Isothiocyanate, acetonitrile, pyridine,ammonia, ethylenediamine, bipyridine, 1,10-phenanthroline, nitrite,triphenylphosphine, cyanide, carbon monoxide, acetylacetone,aminopolycarboxylic acids, cryptates, cyclopentadienyl,diethylenetriamine, dimethylglyoximate, diethylenetriaminepentaaceticacid, ethylenediamine, ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA),ethylenediaminetriacetate, glycinate, nitrosyl, nitrilotriacetic acid,mono and polyphenols, sulfite and triethylenetetramine.

Ligands that can be used to keep produce green longer or added sometimesbefore harvesting to keep produce green longer are aspartic acid,4-tert-butylpyrocatechol, catechol, citric acid,2,3-dihydroxynaphthalene, 2,4-dihydroxybenzophenone, diethylene glycoldimethyl ether, dimethyl glyoxime, ethylene diamine, ethylenediamine-acetic acid, salts of ethylene diamine and its salts, ethylenediamine tetra acetic acid and its salts such as that of sodium,potassium and ammonium, gallic acid, glutamic acid, histidine, lacticacid, maleic acid, malic acid, mandelic acid, oxalic acid,1,10-phenanthroline, gallates such as propyl gallate, pyrogallol,salicylic acid, thioglycolic acid and 2,3,4-trihydroxybenzophenone. Theacid also can be in form of salts.

There are many weak ligands which form a complex with many metalsincluding thiocyanates and isothiocyanate.

Other ligands which function as chelates include 1,3-dicarbonyls,R—C(O)—CH₂—C(O)—R, where R typically is an alkyl group are goodchelating agents. Examples of 1,3-dicarbonyls are acetylacetone,2,3-butanedione, 2,3-pentanedione, and 2,3-hexanedione,trifluoroacetylacetone, and hexafluoroacetylacetone.

Hydrogen sulfide and precursors include black salt which is a type ofrock salt, a salty and pungent-smelling condiment used in the SouthAsia. It is also known as Himalayan black salt. The smell is mainly dueto its sulfur content. It consists primarily of sodium chloride andtrace impurities of sodium sulfate, sodium bisulfate, sodium bisulfite,sodium sulfide, and iron sulfide. When water is added to dissolve it orexposed to humidity, these sulfur compounds and Himalayan black saltproduce hydrogen sulfide which is a gas.

Non-aromatic cyclic ketones that can potentially be used as biocides toextend the shelf-life foods include: cyclobutanone, cyclopentanone,2-methylcyclopentanone, 3-methylcyclopentanone,2,2-dimethylcyclopentanone, 2,4-dimethylcyclopentanone,2-chlorocyclopentanone, cyclohexanone, 2-methylcyclohexanone,2-tert-butylcyclohexanone, 3-methylcyclohexanone, 4-methylcyclohexane,4-ethylcyclohexanone, 4-tert-butylcyclohexanone,2,2-dimethylcyclohexanone, 2,6-dimethylcyclohexanone, menthone,2,2,6-trimethylcyclohexanone, 3,3,5,5-tetramethylcyclohexanone,2-chlorocyclohexanone, 2-hydroxycyclohexanone dimer,2-methoxycyclohexanone, 8-mercaptomenthone, 2-nitrocyclohexanone,cycloheptanone, cyclooctanone, cyclononanone, cyclodecanone,cycloundecanone, cyclododecanone, cyclotridecanone, cyclopentadecanone,thujone, nopinone, 2-hydroxy-3-pinanone, norcamphor, fenchone, camphor,3-chloro-2-norbornanone, 3-bromocamphor, 3-bromocamphor,3,9-dibromocamphor, 9,10-dibromocamphor, 3,9,10-tribromocamphor,thiocamphor, bicyclo(3,2,1)octan-2-one, bicyclo(3,3,1)nonan-9-one,1-decalone, trans-1-decalone, 2-decalone,8-ketotricyclo(5,2,1.0(2,6)decane, 2-adamantanone, chrysanthemylalcohol, 1-acetyl-2-methyl-1-cyclopentene, 1-acetyl-1-cyclohexene,4-acetyl-1-methylcyclohexene, alpha-ionone, beta-ionone,2-acetyl5-norbornene, 2-methyl-2-cyclopenten-1-one,3-methyl-2-cyclopenten-1-one, 2-pentyl-2-cyclopenten-1-one,4,4-dimethyl-2-cyclopenten-1-one, 2,3,4,5-tetramethyl-2-cyclopentanone,cis-jasmone, 3-methyl-1,2-cyclopentanedione,3-ethyl-2-hydroxy-2-cyclopenten-1-one,6,7-dihydrocyclopenta-1,3-dioxin-5(4H)-one, 2-cyclohexen-1-one,3-methyl-2-cyclohexen-1-one, 4,4-dimethyl-2-cyclohexen-1-one,3,5-dimethyl-2-cyclohexen-1-one, 2,4,4-trimethyl-2-cyclohexen-1-one,isophorone, pulegone, dihydrocarvone, carvone, carvone,2,4,4,6-tetrabromo-2,5-cyclohexadienone,4-methyl-4-trichloromethyl-2,5-cyclohexadien-1-one,5-(1-hydroxy-1-methylethyl)-2-methyl-2-cyclohexen-1-one,3-ethoxy-2-cyclohexen-1-one, 3-ethoxy-2-methyl-2-cyclohexen-1-one,4,4-dimethoxy-2,5-cyclohexadien-1-one,3-amino-5,5-dimethyl-2-cyclohexen-1-one,3-(dimethylamino)-5,5-dimethyl-2-cyclohexen-1-one,3-(2-hydroxyethylamino)-5,5-dimethyl-2-cyclohexen-1-one,2-cyclohepten-1-one, tropolone, 8-cyclohexadecen-1-one, verbenone,3-methylene-2-norbornanone,4,4A,5,6,7,8-hexahydro-4A-methyl-2(3H)-naphthalenone,bicyclo(10,3,0)pentadec-12(1)-en-13-one,1-methoxymethyl-5-norbornen-2-one,7-syn-methoxymethyl-5-norbornen-2-one, 2-acetylcyclopentanone,2-acetylcyclohexanone, tetramethyl-1,3-cyclobutanedione,3,3,5,5-tetramethyl-1,2-cyclopentanedione, 1,3-cyclopentanedione,2-methyl-1,3-cyclopentaedione, 2-ethyl-1,3-cyclopentanedione,1,3-cyclohexanedione, 1,4-cyclohexanedione, 1,3-cyclohexanedione,2-methyl-1,3-cyclohexanedione, 5-methyl-1,3-cyclohexanedione,5-isopropyl-1,3-cyclohexanedione hydrate,4,4-dimethyl-1,3-cyclohexanedione, 5,5-dimethyl-1,3-cyclohexanedione,2-chloro-5,5-dimethyl-1,3-cyclohexanedione, camphorquinone,camphorquinone, 3-(trifluoroacetyl)camphor, 3-(trifluoroacetyl)camphor,3-heptafluorobutyryl-camphor, 3-heptafluorobutyryl-camphor,cis-bicyclo(3,3,O)octane-3,7-dione,cis-1,5-dimethylbicyclo(3,3,0)octane-3,7-dione, (3AS,7AS)-hexahydro-3A-hydroxy-7A-methyl-1,5-indandione,bicyclo(3,3,1)nonane-3,7-dione, trans-1,5-decalindione,pentacyclo(5,4,0,0(2,6),0(3,10),0(5,9))-undecane-8,11-dione,3,4-dihydroxy-3-cyclobutene, 1,2-dione,3,4-dihydroxy-3-cyclobutene-1,2-dione, dilithium salt,3,4-dimethoxy-3-cyclobutene, 1,2-dione,3,4-diisopropoxy-3-cyclobutene-1,2-dione,3,4-dibutoxy-3-cyclobutene-1,2-dione, 4-cyclopentene-1,3-dione,4-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-cyclopentene-1,3-dione monohydrate,2-allyl-2-methyl-1,3-cyclopentanedione,2,6,6-trimethyl-2-cyclohexene-1,4-dione,3,5-di-tert-butyl-1,2-benzoquinone, tetrachloro-1,2-benzoquinone,tetrabromo-1,2-benzoquinone, 1,4-benzoquinone,methyl-1,4-benzoquinoline, 2,6-dimethylbenzoquinone, thymoquinone,2,6-di-tert-butyl-1,4-benzoquinone, duroquinone,2-chloro-1,4-benzoquinone,2,5-dibromo-6-isopropyl-3-methyl-1,4-benzoquinone,tetrafluoro-1,4-benzoquinone, tetrachloro-1,4-benzoquinone,tetrabromo-1,4-benzoquinone, 2,5-dihydroxy-1,4-benzoquinone, chloranilicacid, 2,6-dichloroquinone-4-chloroimide, tetrahydroxy-1,4-quinonehydrate, 2-hydroxymethyl-6-methoxy-1,4-benzoquinone,2,3-dimethoxy-5-methyl-1,4-benzoquinone, coerulignone,9-methyl-delta/5(10)-octalin-1,6-dione,1,4,4A,8A-tetrahydro-endo-1,4-methano-naphthalene-5,8-dione,2-acetyl-1,3-cyclohexanedione, rhodizonic acid dihydrate, rhodizonicacid disodium salt, hexakeytocyclohexane octahydrate,2,3-dichloro-1,4,5,8-naphthalenetetrone, 1-diethylamino-3-butanone,4-acetoxy-2-azetidinone, 1-methyl-4-piperidone, 1-ethyl-3-piperidonehydrochloride, 1-ethyl-4-piperidone, 1-propyl-4-piperidone,3-quinuclidinone hydrochloride, 2,2,6,6-tetramethyl-4-piperidonemonohydrate, 2,2,6,6-tetramethyl-4-piperidone hydrochloride,4-((1-methyl-4(1H)-pyridinyl-idene)ethylidene)-2,5-cyclohexadien-1-onehydrate, 3-hydroxy-1,2-dimethyl-4(1H)-pyridone,3,5-diacetyl-1,4-dihydro-2,6-dimethylpyridine, 5,5-dibromobarbituricacid, 4-oxo-temp free radical, 2-methyltetrahydrofuran-3-one,dihydro-2,2,5,5-tetramethyl-3(2H)-furanone, tetrahydro-4H-pyran-4-one,1,4-cyclohexanedione mono-ethylene ketal, 1,4-cyclohexanedionemono-2,2-dimethyl-trimethylene ketal, 4H-pyran-4-one,2,6-dimethyl-gamma-pyrone, 3-hydroxy-2-methyl-4-pyrone, tropinone, kojicacid, exo-6-hydroxytropinone, tetrahyrdrothiophen-3-one,tetrahydrothiopyran-4-one,beta,beta-dimethyl-gamma-(hydroxy-methyl)-gamma-butyrolactone, and1,6-dioxaspiro(4,4)nonane-2,7-dione.

Non-aromatic nitriles such as isothiocyanates that can potentially beused as biocides to extend the shelf-life of food include: methylisothiocyanate, ethyl isothiocyanate, propyl isothiocyanate, butylthiocyanate, tert-butyl thiocyanate, tert-octyl thiocyanate, allylisothiocyanate, cyclohexyl isothiocyanate, 1-adamantyl isothiocyanate,ethoxycarbonyl isothiocyanate, and2,3,4,6-tetra-o-acetyl-beta-D-glucopyranosyl isothiocyanate.

Boronic acids (R—B(OH)₂) are compounds derived of boric acid B(OH)₃ inwhich one of the three hydroxyl groups of boric acid is replaced by analkyl or aryl group (Boronic Acids, Dennis G. Hall, ed. (2005), Wiley.ISBN 978-3-527-30991-7). Boronic acids typically have high meltingpoints. Most boronic acids exist as white crystalline solids that can behandled in air without special precautions. At ambient temperature,boronic acids are chemically stable and most display shelf stability forlong periods of time. The boronic acid functional group is reputed tohave very low inherent toxicity. Most boronic acids present noparticular toxicity compared to other organic compounds.

Boronic acids act as Lewis acids. Their unique feature is that they arecapable of forming reversible covalent complexes with substances likesugars, amino acids, hydroxamic acids, etc (molecules with vicinal, 1,2or occasionally, 1,3 substituted Lewis base donors such as alcohols,amines and carboxylates. Boronic acids have ability to bind withcompounds having 1,2- and 1,3-diols including saccharides (e.g.,sorbitol, fructose, and glucose) and peptidoglycans or with polyols. Aprominent feature of boronic acids is their reversible formation ofesters with diols in aqueous solution. Boronic acid also act as ligandfor forming chelates with metal ions. These properties may be thereasons why boronic acids are good shelf-life extenders.

As used herein the term prevent is defined as stopping or minimizing theaction from happening.

Phenylboronic acid, with a pKa value of 8.9 in water, has an aciditycomparable to a phenol. It is slightly more acidic than boric acid (pKa9.2). Boronic acids act as Lewis acids. Their unique feature is thatthey are capable of forming reversible covalent complexes withsubstances like sugars, amino acids, hydroxamic acids, etc (moleculeswith vicinal, 1,2 or occasionally, 1,3 substituted Lewis base donorssuch as alcohols, amines and carboxylates. They are occasionally used inthe area of molecular recognition to bind to saccharides for fluorescentdetection or selective transport of saccharides across membranes.

Boronic acids have the ability to bind with compounds having 1,2- and1,3-diols including saccharides such as sorbitol, fructose, and glucose,and peptidoglycans or with polyols. Boronic acids are used extensivelyin organic chemistry as chemical building blocks and intermediatespredominantly in the Suzuki coupling. The Petasis reaction, is apowerful multicomponent coupling reaction of a boronic acid, an amine,and a carbonyl derivative (Reactivity and Synthetic Applications ofMulticomponent Petasis Reactions, Peng Wu et al Chemical review, 119,11245 (2019)). Heteroaryl boronic acids are also used in Chan-Lamcoupling, homologations, conjugate additions, electrophilic allylshifts, Lieberskind-Strogl coupling, Sonogashira coupling, and Stillecoupling. A prominent feature of boronic acids is their reversibleformation of esters with diols in aqueous solution. Boronate esters areair stable. The Suzuki-Miyaura cross-coupling reaction can be used withboronate esters.

Particularly preferred boronic acids are selected from a groupconsisting of 4-bromophenylboronic acid, butylboronic acid, phenylboronic acid, 4-tert-butylphenylboronic acid, 3-chlorophenylboronicacid, 3,5-dimethylphenylboronic acid, 4-(methoxycarbonyl)-phenylboronicacid, 2-methoxyphenylboronic acid and 3-methoxyphenylboronic acid.

A number of organoboron compounds can be used for extending shelf-lifeof foods. Some particularly suitable boronic acids suitable forextending shelf-life of foods include: methylboronic acid, ethylboronicacid, propylboronic acid, isopropylboronic acid, butylboronic acid,isobutylboronic acid, pentylboronic acid, hexylboronic acid,n-octylboronic acid, cyclopentylboronic acid, 1-cyclopentenylboronicacid, cyclohexylboronic acid, ferroceneboronic acid,1,1′-ferrocenediboronic acid, 2-phenylethylboronic acid,2,4,6-trivinylboroxin-pyridine complex, 3-aminophenylboronic acidmonohydrate, 3-aminophenylboronic acid hemisulfate, 2-anthraceneboronicacid, 4-acetylphenylboronic acid, 3-acetylphenylboronic acid,9-anthraceneboronic acid, 4-amylphenylboronic acid,3-acetamidophenylboronic acid, 3-amino-4-methylphenylboronic acid,4-acetoxyphenylboronic acid, phenylboronic acid, 4-bromophenylboronicacid, 2-formylphenylboronic acid, 3,5-bis(trifluoromethyl)-phenylboronicacid, 4-benzyloxyphenylboronic acid, 4-tert-butylphenylboronic acid,4-biphenylboronic acid, 2-biphenylboronic acid, 3-biphenylboronic acid,4,4′-biphenyldiboronic acid, 4-butylphenylboronic acid,4′-bromo-4-biphenylboronic acid, 2-bromophenylboronic acid,3-bromophenylboronic acid, 2,4-bis(trifluoromethyl)-phenylboronic acid,3-benzyloxyphenylboronic acid, 2-(bromomethyl)-phenylboronic acid,2-benzyloxy-5-fluorophenylboronic acid,3-(tert-butyldimethylsilyloxy)-phenylboronic acid,4-(tert-butyldimethylsilyloxy)-phenylboronic acid,2-benzyloxy-4-fluorophenylboronic acid, 3-(bromomethyl)-phenylboronicacid, 2,6-bis[(2,2,6,6-tetramethyl-1-piperidinyl)-methyl]-phenylboronicacid, 3-[(tert-butoxycarbonyl)-amino]phenylboronic acid,4-[(tert-butoxycarbonyl)-amino]phenylboronic acid,4-bromo-1-naphthaleneboronic acid, 2-benzyloxyphenylboronic acid,4-benzyloxy-2-fluorophenylboronic acid,4-benzyloxy-3-fluorophenylboronic acid, 3-butoxyphenylboronic acid,2-butoxyphenylboronic acid, 4-(benzyloxycarbonyl)-phenylboronic acid,3-(tert-butoxycarbonyl)-phenylboronic acid, 4-butoxyphenylboronic acid,4-(tert-butoxycarbonyl)-phenylboronic acid, 4-carboxyphenylboronic acid,4-chlorophenylboronic acid, 3-chlorophenylboronic acid,2-chlorophenylboronic acid, 3-chloro-4-fluorophenylboronic acid,4-cyanophenylboronic acid, 3-carboxyphenylboronic acid,3-cyanophenylboronic acid, 5-chloro-2-methoxyphenylboronic acid,3-carboxy-5-nitrophenylboronic acid, 2-chloro-4-methoxyphenylboronicacid, 2-cyanophenylboronic acid, 4-cyano-3-fluorophenylboronic acid,2-carboxyphenylboronic acid, 4-carboxy-3-chlorophenylboronic acid,3-chloro-4-methylphenylboronic acid, 4-carbamoylphenylboronic acid,4-chloro-3-(trifluoromethyl)-phenylboronic acid,4-chloro-2-methylphenylboronic acid,2-chloro-5-(trifluoromethyl)-phenylboronic acid,4-chloro-2-(trifluoromethyl)-phenylboronic acid,5-chloro-2-fluorophenylboronic acid, 3-chloro-4-ethoxyphenylboronicacid, 5-chloro-2-methylphenylboronic acid,2-chloro-5-fluorophenylboronic acid, 3-cyano-4-fluorophenylboronic acid,4-chloro-3-fluorophenylboronic acid, 2-chloro-4-fluorophenylboronicacid, 3-chloro-5-fluorophenylboronic acid,4-(9h-carbazol-9-yl)-phenylboronic acid, 3-carboxy-4-fluorophenylboronicacid, 3-chloro-2-fluorophenylboronic acid,3-(9h-carbazol-9-yl)-phenylboronic acid, 3-chloro-4-hydroxyphenylboronicacid, 3-carbamoylphenylboronic acid, 4-chloro-2-fluorophenylboronicacid, 2-chloro-4-methylphenylboronic acid,3-chloro-4-methoxyphenylboronic acid, 4-chloro-3-methylphenylboronicacid, 2,4-dichlorophenylboronic acid, 3,5-dichlorophenylboronic acid,2,5-dichlorophenylboronic acid, 3,5-difluorophenylboronic acid,2,6-difluorophenylboronic acid, 3,4-dimethylphenylboronic acid,2,6-dichlorophenylboronic acid, 2,4-difluorophenylboronic acid,3,5-dimethylphenylboronic acid, 2,3-dichlorophenylboronic acid,2,4,6-tris(3,4-dichlorophenyl)boroxine, 2,5-difluorophenylboronic acid,3,4-dimethoxyphenylboronic acid, 3,5-dimethoxyphenylboronic acid,2,4-dimethylphenylboronic acid, 2,3-dimethylphenylboronic acid,2,5-dimethylphenylboronic acid, 2,4-dimethoxyphenylboronic acid,2,5-dimethoxyphenylboronic acid, 2,3-difluorophenylboronic acid,4-(diphenylamino)-phenylboronic acid, 2,6-dimethylphenylboronic acid,3,4-dichlorophenylboronic acid, 2,3-dimethoxyphenylboronic acid,2,6-dimethoxyphenylboronic acid, 9,9-dimethylfluoren-2-boronic acid,3-(dimethylamino)phenylboronic acid hydrochloride,3-(dimethylcarbamoyl)-phenylboronic acid, 2,4-dibutoxyphenylboronicacid, 4-(dimethylamino)-phenylboronic acid,9,10-diphenylanthracene-2-boronic acid, 3,5-dibromophenylboronic acid,4-(diethylcarbamoyl)-phenylboronic acid,2,6-difluoro-4-methoxyphenylboronic acid,2,6-difluoro-3-methoxyphenylboronic acid,2,3-difluoro-4-methoxyphenylboronic acid, 4-ethylphenylboronic acid,2-ethoxyphenylboronic acid, 3-ethoxyphenylboronic acid,4-ethoxyphenylboronic acid, 2-ethylphenylboronic acid,3-(ethoxycarbonyl)-phenylboronic acid, 4-(ethoxycarbonyl)-phenylboronicacid, 2-(ethoxycarbonyl)-phenylboronic acid,6-ethoxy-2-naphthaleneboronic acid, 4-ethoxy-3-fluorophenylboronic acid,4-ethoxy-2-methylphenylboronic acid, 3-ethoxy-5-fluorophenylboronicacid, 4-fluorophenylboronic acid, 3-fluorophenylboronic acid,2-fluorophenylboronic acid, 3-formylphenylboronic acid,4-formylphenylboronic acid, 4-fluoro-2-methylphenylboronic acid,2-fluoro-4-methylphenylboronic acid, 4-fluoro-3-methylphenylboronicacid, 3-fluoro-4-methylphenylboronic acid,5-fluoro-2-methoxyphenylboronic acid, 2-fluoro-4-biphenylboronic acid,2-fluoro-5-(trifluoromethyl)-phenylboronic acid,2-fluoro-4-(trifluoromethyl)-phenylboronic acid,4-fluoro-3-(trifluoromethyl)-phenylboronic acid,5-formyl-2-methoxyphenylboronic acid, 3-fluoro-4-methoxyphenylboronicacid, 2-fluoro-5-methylphenylboronic acid,4-fluoro-3-methoxyphenylboronic acid, 2-fluoro-3-methoxyphenylboronicacid, 2-fluoro-6-methoxyphenylboronic acid,3-fluoro-4′-propyl-4-biphenylboronic acid,4-fluoro-3-(methoxycarbonyl)-phenylboronic acid,3-fluoro-5-hydroxyphenylboronic acid, 3-fluoro-2-methylphenylboronicacid, 5-fluoro-2-methylphenylboronic acid,5-fluoro-2-hydroxyphenylboronic acid,2-fluoro-3-(trifluoromethyl)phenylboronic acid,3-fluoro-4-formylphenylboronic acid,4-fluoro-2-(trifluoromethyl)phenylboronic acid,4-fluoro-3-formylphenylboronic acid,2-fluoro-4-(methoxycarbonyl)-phenylboronic acid, 2-hydroxyphenylboronicacid, 3-hydroxyphenylboronic acid, 4-(hydroxymethyl)phenylboronic acid,4-hydroxyphenylboronic acid, 3-(hydroxymethyl)phenylboronic acid,2-(hydroxymethyl)phenylboronic acid, 4-hexyloxyphenylboronic acid,6-hydroxy-2-naphthaleneboronic acid, 4-hexylphenylboronic acid,4-hydroxy-2-methylphenylboronic acid,3-(hydroxymethyl)-4-methoxyphenylboronic acid, 4-isopropylphenylboronicacid, 4-isopropoxyphenylboronic acid, 4-iodophenylboronic acid,3-isopropylphenylboronic acid, 4-(isopropylthio)phenylboronic acid,4-methylphenylboronic acid, 4-methyl-3-nitrophenylboronic acid,4-methoxyphenylboronic acid, 2-methoxyphenylboronic acid,2-methylphenylboronic acid, 3-methylphenylboronic acid,3-methoxyphenylboronic acid, 4-(methylthio)phenylboronic acid,2-(methylthio)phenylboronic acid, 3-(methylthio)phenylboronic acid,2-(methoxycarbonyl)phenylboronic acid, 3-(methoxycarbonyl)phenylboronicacid, 4-(methoxycarbonyl)phenylboronic acid,4-(methylsulfonyl)phenylboronic acid,4-methoxy-2,6-dimethylphenylboronic acid,4-methoxy-2-methylphenylboronic acid, 6-methoxy-2-naphthaleneboronicacid, 2-methoxy-5-methylphenylboronic acid, 3-mercaptophenylboronicacid, 4-mercaptophenylboronic acid, 4-methyl-1-naphthaleneboronic acid,3-methacrylamidophenylboronic acid, 4-(methoxymethyl)phenylboronic acid,2-(methylsulfonyl)phenylboronic acid,4-methoxy-3,5-dimethylphenylboronic acid, 3-nitrophenylboronic acid,1-naphthaleneboronic acid, 2-naphthaleneboronic acid,4-(1-naphthyl)phenylboronic acid, 2-nitrophenylboronic acid,4-nitrophenylboronic acid, 10-(2-naphthyl)anthracene-9-boronic acid,4-(2-naphthyl)phenylboronic acid, 3-(2-naphthyl)phenylboronic acid,9-phenanthreneboronic acid, 1,4-phenylenediboronic acid, 1-pyreneboronicacid, pentafluorophenylboronic acid, 4-propoxyphenylboronic acid,4-phenoxyphenylboronic acid, 10-phenyl-9-anthraceneboronic acid,2-(pivalamido)phenylboronic acid,4-[(1-pyrrolidinyl)carbonyl]-phenylboronic acid,4-(1-phenyl-1h-benzimidazol-2-yl)phenylboronic acid,4-(trans-4-propylcyclohexyl)-phenylboronic acid,4-phenylnaphthalene-1-boronic acid, 4-(1-pyrenyl)phenylboronic acid,4-(trans-4-pentylcyclohexyl)-phenylboronic acid,4′-pentyloxybiphenyl-4-boronic acid, 4-(3-pyridyl)phenylboronic acidhydrochloride, 9,9′-spirobi[9h-fluorene]-2-boronic acid,4-(trifluoromethoxy)phenylboronic acid, 4-(trifluoromethyl)phenylboronicacid, 3-(trifluoromethyl)phenylboronic acid,2-(trifluoromethyl)-phenylboronic acid,2,4,6-tris(4-fluorophenyl)boroxine,2,4,6-tris(m-terphenyl-5′-yl)boroxine,2,4,6-tris(3,4,5-trifluorophenyl)-boroxin, 2,4,6-trimethylphenylboronicacid, 3-(trifluoromethoxy)phenylboronic acid, 2-p-terphenylboronic acid,2-(trifluoromethoxy)phenylboronic acid,2,4,6-tris(3,4-difluorophenyl)-boroxin, 2,3,4-trifluorophenylboronicacid, 2,4,6-triphenylboroxin, 2,4,6-triisopropylphenylboronic acid,3-(trimethylsilyl)phenylboronic acid, 4-(trimethylsilyl)phenylboronicacid, 5′-m-terphenylboronic acid, 2,4,6-trifluorophenylboronic acid,3,4,5-trimethoxyphenylboronic acid, 2,3,5-trifluorophenylboronic acid,2-[(2,2,6,6-tetramethyl-1-piperidyl)-methyl]phenylboronic acid,10-(1,1′:3′,1″-terphenyl-5′-yl)-anthracene-9-boronic acid,4-vinylphenylboronic acid, 2-vinylphenylboronic acid,5-acetyl-2-thiopheneboronic acid, 5-bromo-2-thiopheneboronic acid,benzo[b]thiophene-2-boronic acid, benzofuran-2-boronic acid,2-bromopyridine-5-boronic acid, 1-(tert-butoxycarbonyl)-2-pyrroleboronicacid, 1,4-benzodioxane-6-boronic acid, benzofuran-3-boronic acid,benzo[b]thiophene-3-boronic acid, 5-chloro-2-thiopheneboronic acid,2-chloropyridine-5-boronic acid, 2-chloropyridine-3-boronic acid,2-chloropyridine-4-boronic acid, 5-chloro-2-fluoropyridine-3-boronicacid, dithieno[3,2-b:2′,3′-d]-thiophene-2-boronic acid,2,6-difluoro-3-pyridineboronic acid, dibenzothiophene-4-boronic acid,dibenzothiophene-2-boronic acid, dibenzofuran-4-boronic acid,2,6-dimethoxypyridine-3-boronic acid, 2,6-dichloropyridine-3-boronicacid, 2,3-dihydrobenzofuran-5-boronic acid, 2-ethoxypyridine-5-boronicacid, 9-ethylcarbazole-3-boronic acid, 2-furylboronic acid,3-furylboronic acid, 5′-formyl-2,2′-bithiophene-5-boronic acid,5-formyl-2-thiopheneboronic acid, 5-formyl-2-furanboronic acid,2-fluoropyridine-3-boronic acid, 2-fluoropyridine-5-boronic acid,5-fluoropyridine-3-boronic acid, 2-fluoropyridine-4-boronic acid,2-fluoro-3-methylpyridine-5-boronic acid, 6-indoleboronic acid,5-methyl-2-thiopheneboronic acid, 2-methoxypyridine-5-boronic acid,3,4-(methylenedioxy)phenylboronic acid, 2-methoxypyridine-3-boronicacid, 2-methylpyridine-5-boronic acid hydrochloride,2-methoxy-5-pyrimidylboronic acid, 2-methoxypyridine-4-boronic acid,5-methyl-2-furanboronic acid, 5-methoxypyridine-3-boronic acid,4-pyridylboronic acid, 3-pyridylboronic acid, 5-pyrimidylboronic acid,9-phenylcarbazole-3-boronic acid, 9-phenylcarbazole-2-boronic acid,quinoline-3-boronic acid, quinoline-8-boronic acid, quinoline-5-boronicacid, 2-thiopheneboronic acid, 3-thiopheneboronic acid,thieno[3,2-b]thiophene-2-boronic acid, and2-(trifluoromethyl)pyridine-5-boronic acid.

Isothiocyanates (R—N═C═S) are derivatives from glucosinolates in cellsof plants of the Cruciferae or mustard family (cabbage, kohlrabi,Brussel sprouts, cauliflower, broccoli, kale, horseradish, mustard,turnips, rutubaga). Isothiocyanates are inhibitory to fungi, yeasts andbacteria in the range of 16-110 ng/ml in the vapor phase and 10-600μg/ml in liquid media. Inhibition against bacteria varies but generallygram-positive bacteria are less sensitive to ally isothiocyanate thangram-negative bacteria.

Particularly preferred isothiocyanates that can be used as shelf-lifeextenders include: Allyl isothiocyanate, methyl isothiocyanate, benzylisothiocyanate, isopropyl isothiocyanate, isobutyl isothiocyanate,propyl isothiocyanate, benzoyl isothiocyanate, cyclohexylisothiocyanate, ethyl isothiocyanate, butyl isothiocyanate, fluoresceinisothiocyanate), ethoxycarbonyl isothiocyanate, phenyl isothiocyanate,phenyl isothiocyanate, 3-iodophenyl isothiocyanate, 4-chlorophenylisothiocyanate, 2-phenylethyl isothiocyanate, 3-bromophenylisothiocyanate, fluorescein 5-isothiocyanate, 3-pyridyl isothiocyanate,1-adamantyl isothiocyanate, 1-naphthyl isothiocyanate, 2-methoxyphenylisothiocyanate, 4-nitrophenyl isothiocyanate, 4-methoxyphenylisothiocyanate, fluorescein isothiocyanate dextran, 4-bromophenylisothiocyanate, fluorescein 6-isothiocyanate, 2-chlorophenylisothiocyanate, 4-cyanophenyl isothiocyanate, 4-fluorophenylisothiocyanate, 2-fluorophenyl isothiocyanate, 3-fluorophenylisothiocyanate, 2-chloroethyl isothiocyanate, 3,4-dimethoxyphenylisothiocyanate, 2,4-difluorophenyl isothiocyanate,4-(trifluoromethyl)phenyl isothiocyanate, 2-(trifluoromethyl)phenylisothiocyanate, 3,4-dichlorophenyl isothiocyanate,3-(trifluoromethyl)phenyl isothiocyanate, 3,5-dimethylphenylisothiocyanate, 3-(methylthio)propyl isothiocyanate,4-(trifluoromethoxy)phenyl isothiocyanate, 2,4-dimethylphenylisothiocyanate, 3,4-difluorophenyl isothiocyanate, 2,4-dimethoxyphenylisothiocyanate, 2,3-dichlorophenyl isothiocyanate, 2,4-dichlorophenylisothiocyanate, sec-butyl isothiocyanate, n-octyl isothiocyanate,4-penten-1-yl isothiocyanate, p-tolyl isothiocyanate, o-tolylisothiocyanate, 3-buten-1-yl isothiocyanate, 4-dimethylamino-1-naphthylisothiocyanate, 4-(dimethylamino)azobenzene 4′-isothiocyanate, m-tolylisothiocyanate, 2,4,6-trimethylphenyl isothiocyanate,3,5-bis(trifluoromethyl)phenyl isothiocyanate, 4-tert-butylphenylisothiocyanate, 5-fluoro-o-tolyl isothiocyanate,2,3,4,6-tetra-o-benzoyl-3-d-glucopyranosyl isothiocyanate,2,3,4,6-tetra-o-acetyl-β-d-glucopyranosyl isothiocyanate,4-isothiocyanato-2-(trifluoromethyl)benzonitrile, ethylisothiocyanatoacetate, dansylamino-pitc, dl-sulforaphane,isothiocyanatocyclopropane, 1-isothiocyanato-3-nitrobenzene,1,3-diisopropyl-2-isothiocyanatobenzene, and erucin.

Allyl cyanate, allyl isothiocyanate, allyl thiocyanate, benzylisothiocyanate, butyl isothiocyanate, 1-cyano-2,3-epithiopropane,cyclopentyl isothiocyanate, diallyl sulfide, epithionitrile, isobutylisothiocyanate, isopropyl isothiocyanate, methyl isothiocyanate,oxazolidine thione, phenylethyl isothiocyanate, phenethyl thiocyanate,phenyl isothiocyanate and phenylpropyl thiocyanate are found incruciferous produce.

Many products have a natural coating of wax and cannot be easily wetted.Extending the shelf-life of wax coated products requires a spray or dipcoating with an aqueous solution of a shelf-life extender. In order geta uniform coating on produce, especially those who have a layer ofnatural wax, it is desirable to have a wetting agent, or surfactant,added in the solution. A large number of surfactants, many of them FDAapproved for foods, are commercially available. Such wetting agents canbe added in a solution of shelf-life extender before the spraying. Inorder to provide a thicker layer of shelf-life extender, one can add athickening agent such as water-soluble polymers such as starch and guargum. As an alternative, one can make an emulsion or dispersion ofshelf-life extenders and coat the produce. The shelf-life extendersdisclosed herein can be added in waxes and coated on produce.

Fungicides kill fungi by damaging their cell membranes, inactivatingcritical enzymes or proteins, or by interfering with key processes suchas energy production or respiration. Narrow-spectrum fungicides areeffective against only a few usually closely related pathogens. Theseusually have single-site activity and are often systemic. Broad-spectrumfungicides can often control a wide range of unrelated pathogens. Theseusually are contacts with multi-site activity. Shelf-life extendersdisclosed herein are fungicides who prevent fungus formation and growthappear to be broad spectrum and they can be used to prevent fungusformation in pre-harvest foods.

Though we used small produce for demonstration of feasibility concepts,it is obvious that the materials and methods disclosed herein to extendthe shelf-life can be used for large produce such as watermelon,cantaloupe, honeydew, pineapple, pumpkins and a number of other largeproduce. Likewise, we demonstrated the concepts using a small number butthe materials and methods disclosed herein to extend the shelf-life canalso be used for a large number of other foods.

The materials and methods disclosed herein can be used to keep a varietyof produce green longer while fresh or as specimen after drying.Christmas trees and other decorative trees, branches and leaves can bekept green longer and fresher.

Chemical and biochemical changes in the food exposed to the shelf-lifeextenders can be determined by analytical methods, such as HPLC, massspectroscopy, FTIR, NMR and many others including bio-analytical methodsand instruments.

Devices

For control release of shelf-life extenders, they can bemicroencapsulated or sachets with a proper barrier material can beprepared.

Sachet Size and Barrier Films

A sachet can be a small blister bubble as in bubble packaging. The sizeof the blister or sachet can be from 10 cubic mm to 100 cubic centimeteror larger if required. The choice of the wall material for sachets willdepend upon the nature of the shelf-life extender. The sachet can bemade from common plastic films or laminated plastic films such as thatof polyethylene, polypropylene, polyvinyls, nylons, polyesters,cellophane, cellulose acetate and that of many copolymers. For highlypermeable shelf-life extender such as allyl isothiocyanate a highbarrier plastic film such as that of polyester and for less permeablematerials such as phenyl isothiocyanate a highly permeable material suchas polyethylene is preferred. The rate of release (permeation) of liquidshelf-life extenders can also be controlled by varying the thickness ofthe film used for making the sachet. The thickness of the film of thesachet can be varied from 10 to 1,000 microns. For solid shelf-lifeextenders, such as Himalayan/black salt a precursor for hydrogensulfide, materials such as paper, fabric or synthetic materials such asTyvek can be used.

Micro-Encapsulation

Shelf-life extenders can be microencapsulated and activated by rupturingmicrocapsule by heat or pressure.

Fumigation

Some of the shelf-life extenders which prevent growth of fungus and killbacteria and viruses can be used for fumigation of foods such as grains,legumes and produce.

Pre-Harvest Applications

The shelf-life extenders can also be used for pre-harvest foods. Forexample, the shelf-life extenders can be sprayed on produce or irrigatedbefore harvesting. Animals can be fed shelf-life extenders beforeslaughtering or shelf-life extenders can be added in a water tank beforekilling fish. Less volatile liquids and solids, preferably thiocyanates,isothiocyanates, cyclic ketones and their precursor can be sprayed oncrops before harvesting or used as pest and insect control, such as apesticide, and to keep produce fresh and green longer.

Optimization

The exposure required, e.g., total dose, to extend the shelf-life of aproduce will depend upon many variables such as the nature andconcentration of the shelf-life extenders. Optimum performance of theshelf-life extenders can be obtained by optimizing the systems.

Two Treatments

If required, produce can be pre-exposed or pre-treated with a shelf-lifeextender followed by use of a sachet containing the same or anothershelf-life extender. The terms pre-exposure and pre-treatment are usedinterchangeably herein. Pre-exposure includes dipping/rinsing food in asolution of a shelf-life extender. Wax coating and current materials andmethod can be combined. Produce can be pre-treated with the shelf-lifeextender followed by coating with a wax or vice versa or the shelf-lifeextenders can be added in the wax coating.

An edible wax coating formulation was prepared by heating a mixture of300 g of distilled water, 40 g of candelilla wax (melting point 68-72°C.) and 4 g of polysorbate as an emulsifier to 90° C. and homogenizingwith a high speed stirrer for a few minutes. The mixture was then cooledto room temperature in five minutes by circulating cold water and 200 gof distilled cold water was added. To about 50 g of the edible waxsuspension were added 0.2 g of (i) ethyl isothiocyanate, (ii) phenylisothiocyanate, (iii) acetylacetonate, and (iv) phenyl boronic acid andmixed. A black fungus grew on the control sample (a sample without anyshelf-life extender) after ten days, while there was no fungus onsamples containing the shelf-life extenders at 35 days. Examples ofwaxes that can be coated on produce with the shelf-life extender includenatural and synthetic polymers such as polyethylene, polyester andpolyamides, and natural polymers and waxes such as agar, beeswax,candelilla wax, carnauba wax, guar, gum arabic, acacia gum, karaya,microcrystalline synthetic wax, shellac, tragacanth, xanthan and zein.Addition of the shelf-life extenders in the edible polymeric coatingwill enhance the effectiveness of the coating as the shelf-lifeextenders will further extend the shelf life by preventing or minimizinggrowth of fungus, keep produce green/colored longer and delay ripening.

The effectiveness of the shelf-life extenders has been demonstrated bythe growth of fungus being reduced or stopped, green produce kept greenlonger, the ripening of some fruits delayed, freshness and crispiness ofproduce extended, liquid foods such as milk and juices preserved longer;seeds such as grains, legumes, nuts and root vegetables such potatoes;prevented from sprouting or germinating, sweating/perspiration and hencewilting reduced, and prepared/processed foods kept fresher longer.

A brief description of produce wherein the invention has beendemonstrated, including their genus/biological names are providedherein. Apple is an edible fruit produced by an apple tree (Malusdomestica) and with the most widely grown species in the genus Malus.Banana is an elongated, edible fruit which is botanically a berry in thegenus Musa wherein the fruit is variable in size, color, and firmness.Almost all modern edible seedless (parthenocarp) bananas come from twowild species—Musa acuminata and Musa balbisiana. Basil (Ocimumbasilicum) is a culinary herb of the family Lamiaceae (mints).Blackberry is an edible fruit produced by many species in the genusRubus in the family Rosaceae, hybrids among these species within thesubgenus Rubus, and hybrids between the subgenera Rubus and Idaeobatus.Blueberries are perennial flowering plants with blue or purple berriesclassified in the section Cyanococcus within the genus Vaccinium.Broccoli is an edible green plant in the cabbage family (familyBrassicaceae, genus Brassica) whose large flowering head, stalk andsmall associated leaves are eaten as a vegetable.

Carrot (Daucus carota subsp. sativus) is a root vegetable, usuallyorange in color. Carrot is a domesticated form of the wild carrot,Daucus carota, native to Europe and Southwestern Asia. Cherry tomato isa type of small round tomato believed to be an intermediate geneticadmixture between wild currant-type tomatoes and domesticated gardentomatoes. The cherry tomato is regarded as a botanical variety of thecultivated berry, Solanum lycopersicum var. cerasiforme. Chickpea, orchick pea, (Cicer arietinum) is an annual legume of the family Fabaceae,subfamily Faboideae. Different types of chickpeas are variously known asgram, garbanzo or Egyptian pea. Choli beans, Cow pea (Vigna unguiculata)is a legume from the genus Vigna. Cilantro is an herb from the freshleaves of the coriander plant (Coriandrum sativum). Cilantro is a memberof the parsley family and the herb is also known as Chinese parsley andMexican parsley. Clementines (Citrus×clementina) is a tangor which aCitrus fruit hybrid between a willowleaf mandarin orange (C.×deliciosa)and a sweet orange (C.×sinensis). Tangerines, which are similar toclementines tend to be easy to peel. Coriander (Coriandrum sativum) isan annual herb in the family Apiaceae and also known as Chinese parsley,dhania or cilantro. Cucumber (Cucumis sativus) is a widely-cultivatedcreeping vine plant in the Cucurbitaceae gourd family that bearscucumiform fruits, which are used as vegetables. In North America, theterm wild cucumber refers to plants in the genera Echinocystis andMarah, though the two are not closely related.

Dill (Anethum graveolens) is an annual herb in the celery familyApiaceae and is the only species in the genus Anethum. Dill is grownwidely in Eurasia where its leaves and seeds are used as an herb orspice for flavoring food. Eggplant, anglophone, aubergine or brinjal isa plant species in the nightshade family Solanaceae. Solanum melongenais grown worldwide for its edible fruit. Fenugreek, (Trigonellafoenum-graecum) is an annual plant in the family Fabaceae, with leavesconsisting of three small obovate to oblong leaflets. Grape is a fruit,botanically a berry, of the deciduous woody vines of the flowering plantgenus Vitis. Guar or cluster bean, with the botanical name Cyamopsistetragonoloba, is an annual legume and the source of guar gum also knownas gavar or guvar bean. Lemon, Citrus limon, is a species of smallevergreen tree in the flowering plant family Rutaceae, native to SouthAsia, primarily North eastern India. Lima beans (Phaseolus lunatus)commonly known as the lima bean, butter bean, sieva bean, double bean orMadagascar bean, is a legume grown for its edible seeds or beans. Limeis a Citrus fruit, which is typically round, green in color, containsacidic juice vesicles. Lychee or Litchee is the sole member of the genusLitchi in the soapberry family, Sapindaceae.

Math or moth bean (Vigna aconitifolia) is a legume, commonly grown inregions of India. Mint (Lamiaceae or Labiatae) are a family of floweringplants commonly known as the mint or deadnettle or sage family. Many ofthe plants are aromatic in all parts and include widely used culinaryherbs like basil, mentha, rosemary, sage, savory, marjoram, oregano,hyssop, thyme, lavender, and perilla. Mushroom or edible mushrooms arethe fleshy and edible fruit bodies of several species of macrofungi. Thestandard for the name “mushroom” is the cultivated white buttonmushroom, Agaricus bisporus; hence the word “mushroom” is most oftenapplied to those fungi (Basidiomycota, Agaricomycetes) that have a stem(stipe), a cap (pileus), and gills (lamellae, sing. lamella) on theunderside of the cap. Mung or mung bean (Vigna radiata), is a legumemainly cultivated in East Asia. Orange is the fruit of various Citrusspecies in the family Rutaceae primarily refers to Citrus×sinensis,which is also called sweet orange, to distinguish it from the relatedCitrus×aurantium, referred to as bitter orange.

Papadi beans or flat beans, also known as helda beans, romano beans and“sem fhali” in some Indian states, are a variety of Phaseolus coccineus,known as runner beans with edible pods that have a characteristic wideand flat shape. Parsley or garden parsley (Petroselinum crispum) is aspecies of flowering plant in the family Apiaceae that is native to thecentral and eastern Mediterranean region which is widely cultivated asan herb and a vegetable. Parval (Trichosanthes dioica), also known aspointed gourd, is a vine plant in the family Cucurbitaceae, similar tocucumber and squash. Parval is a dioecious (male and female plants) vine(creeper) plant with heart-shaped leaves (cordate) and is typicallygrown on a trellis. Peanut, also known as the groundnut andtaxonomically classified as Arachis hypogaea, is a legume crop grownmainly for its edible seeds. It is classified as both a grain legumeand, due to its high oil content, an oil crop; Pearl onion (Alliumampeloprasum var. sectivum or A. ampeloprasum ‘Pearl-Onion Group’), alsoknown as button, baby or silverskin onions is a close relative of theleek (A. ampeloprasum var. porrum). Pepper or chili pepper (also chile,chilli) is the fruit of plants from the genus Capsicum which are membersof the nightshade family, Solanaceae. Plum is a fruit of the subgenusPrunus. Potato is a root vegetable native to the Americas and is astarchy tuber of the plant Solanum tuberosum wherein the plant itself isa perennial in the nightshade family, Solanaceae;

Radish (Raphanus raphanistrum sativus) is an edible root vegetable ofthe family Brassicaceae. Raspberry is an edible fruit of a multitude ofplant species in the genus Rubus of the rose family most of which are inthe subgenus Idaeobatus wherein the name also applies to these plantsthemselves. Snow Peas is an edible-pod pea with flat pods and thin podwalls, which is typically eaten whole, with both the seeds and the pod,while still unripe. Strawberry, garden strawberry (or simply strawberry;Fragaria×ananassa) is a widely grown hybrid species of the genusFragaria, collectively known as the strawberries, which are cultivatedworldwide for their fruit. String Beans. Green beans are the unripe,young fruit of various cultivars of the common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris)wherein immature or young pods of the runner bean (Phaseolus coccineus),yard long bean (Vigna unguiculata subsp. sesquipedalis), and hyacinthbean (Lablab purpureus) are used in a similar way. Tindora (Cocciniagrandis, the ivy gourd), also known as scarlet gourd, tindora and kowaifruit is a tropical vine which grows primarily in tropical climates andis commonly found in the southern Indian states where it forms a part ofthe local cuisine. Rajama is a red kidney bean. Tuver, or pigeon pea,(Cajanus cajan) is a legume grown in Asia. Urad bean, black gram (Vignamungo) is a bean gown in South Asia. Vaal or lima beans (Phaseoluslunatus) is legume grown for its edible seed. Vatana or peas is (Pisumsativum) is a legume and has many varieties.

The shelf-extenders can be used for extending shelf-life of meat such aschicken, mutton, pork, beef, camel, horse, emu, alligator, crocodile,turtle, ostrich, duck, deer, zebra, water buffalo, and rabbit.

The shelf-extenders can be used for extending shelf-life of fish such asbasa, flounder, hake, scup, smelt, rainbow trout, hardshell clam, bluecrab, peekytoe crab, spanner crab, cuttlefish, eastern oyster, Pacificoyster, anchovy, herring, lingcod, moi, orange roughy, Atlantic Oceanperch, Lake Victoria perch, yellow perch, European oyster, sea urchin,Atlantic mackerel, Sardines, Black sea bass, European sea bass, hybridstriped bass, bream, cod, drum, haddock, hoki, Alaska pollock, rockfish,pink salmon, snapper, tilapia, turbot, walleye, lake whitefish,wolffish, hardshell clam, surf clam, cockle, Jonah crab, snow crab,crayfish, bay scallop, Chinese white shrimp, sablefish, Atlantic salmon,coho salmon, skate, dungeness crab, king crab, blue mussel, greenshellmussel, pink shrimp, escolar, chinook salmon, chum salmon, Americanshad, Arctic char, carp, catfish, dory, grouper, halibut, monkfish,pompano, Dover sole, sturgeon, tilefish, wahoo, yellowtail, abalone,conch, stone crab, American lobster, spiny lobster, octopus, black tigershrimp, freshwater shrimp, gulf shrimp, Pacific white shrimp, squid,barramundi, cusk, dogfish, kingklip, mahimahi, opah, mako shark,swordfish, albacore tuna, yellowfin tuna, geoduck clam, squat lobster,sea scallop, rock shrimp, barracuda, Chilean sea bass, cobia, croaker,eel, blue marlin, mullet, sockeye salmon and bluefin tuna.

Throughout the specification the term treated refers to food that waspreviously treated or is currently being treated.

Although the invention has been described with regard to its preferredembodiments, it should be understood that changes, optimization andmodifications obvious to one having the ordinary skill in his art may bemade without departing from the scope of the invention. The followingexamples are illustrative of carrying out the claimed invention butshould not be construed as being limitation on the scope or spirit ofthe instant invention.

EXAMPLES Example 1: Containers Used for Testing

Food exposed to preservatives or by a sachet was placed in typicallypolystyrene or acrylic containers depending upon the size and number offood items. Glass jars and bottles were also used. The containers weresnap-closed or with a lid. The containers were purchased mainly fromAmazon or Webstaurant.com store. When needed, plastic containers withholes or without lids were used.

Example 2: Preservatives

The following shelf-life extenders were more widely used than theothers: Allyl isothiocyanate: CAS number 57-06-7, Cyclohexanone: CASnumber 108-94-1, 2-Cyclohexen-1-one: CAS number 930-68-7,1-Methyl-1-cyclopentene: CAS number 693-89-0, Acetylacetone(Pentane-2,4-dione): CAS number: 123-54-6, 3-chlorophenylboronic acid:CAS 63503-60-6, Phenylboronic acid: CAS #98-80-6, and Butylboronic acid:CAS #4426-47-5. These chemicals were mainly purchased from TCI America,Portland, Oreg. and Sigma Aldrich, St. Louis, Mo.

Example 3: Sachets

For controlled exposure and a constant supply of a preservative tofoods, sachets containing one or more drops of preservatives were used.Sachets were made by placing an appropriate amount of a preservative ina plastic bag containing a piece of paper and heat sealing the bag. Thesachet bag materials used were Tyvek® for solid preservative,polyethylene, polyester and high barrier multilayer films were used forliquid preservatives. These bags were sealed with a heat sealer. Thesachet was typically applied on one side of the container containingfood.

Example 4: Pre-Exposure to Vapor of Preservatives

A piece of paper napkin was taped inside a 100 microns thickpolyethylene or polyester Ziploc bag. The size of the bag varied from˜20 cm×30 cm to ˜60 cm×90 cm depended on the sample with sandwich bagsup to gallon bags being exemplary. The paper napkin was wetted with0.1-0.5 ml of a preservative or a mixture of preservatives. A tray ofaluminum, stainless steel or glass containing the foods was placedinside the plastic (polyethylene, polyester and multilayer-laminated)bag and almost closed by locking the Ziploc. Air was blown with an airblower from the unclosed end until the bag was fully blown and thenquickly closed tightly by locking the remaining Ziploc. If apreservative was a sublimeable solid, it was placed in a petri dish andthen placed inside the bag in the tray before blowing air. The exposuretime was varied from five minutes to a day depending upon the food. Forexample, the time was typically minutes for leafy vegetables, hours forproduce having a thick skin and 10-20 hours those having a natural waxcoating on the skin and large produce. The assembly was shakenperiodically. After the predetermined time, the tray containing producewas removed from the bag, allowed to de-gas for 10-30 minutes in air andthe produce was then placed in an appropriately sized container. Glassand stainless steel containers with lids were also often used.

Example 5: Soaking Foods in Solution of Preservatives

A solution of one or more preservatives was prepared in a large (e.g.,2-10 liter) glass beaker or a jar. A sack containing the food wasprepared by placing the food in a plastic mesh bag. The sack was placedin the solution of the preservative. A smaller glass beaker containingproper amount of water was place over the package to keep the sacksoaked in the solution of the preservative during the treatment. Thesolution was stirred either with a plastic spatula or with a magnet overa magnetic stirrer. After treatment, the mesh sack was removed, theproduce was washed in a tray with running water, strained and air driedat 30° C. in an air blowing oven for about 5-10 minutes, while shakingthe tray or turning the food periodically followed by placing the samplein an appropriate container.

Example 6: Spray Coating

The food was placed in mesh trays and sprayed with an aqueous solution(1-10%) of a preservative while shaking the tray or turning the food.The solution was allowed to drain from the tray and the food was airdried in an air blowing oven at 30° C. for about 5-10 minutes, whileshaking the tray or turning food periodically followed by placing thesample in an appropriate container.

If required, for produce such as pepper and eggplant having natural wax,an edible wetting agent/surfactant (usually less than 0.5%), such aspolysorbate was added in the solution of the preservative beforespraying.

Example 7: Addition of Preservative in Foods

If the food was liquid, such as milk or freshly prepared juices, thepreservative was added in the food while stirring.

Example 8: Testing and Recording the Results

The untreated (control sample) and treated food were placed in propersized plastic containers and the containers were tightly closed. Thecontainers containing the treated and untreated food were stored,usually in dark, at room temperature (about 25° C.). Photographs weretaken after closing the container and then periodically as needed.Typically, a food container was discarded if it developed fungus or ifthe food emitted an undesired odor. The treated food was neither eatennor analyzed by any analytical instrument or a method. Sometimes, thefirmness of produce was tested by breaking or cutting it.

Example 9: Criteria Used for Testing of Food

The following major criteria were used for determining spoilage offoods: growth of fungus, color change, unpleasant odor, wilting,firmness or shriveling, change of state (liquid to solid or vice versa),and sprouting or germination

Example 10: Sources of Food

Almost all produce, fruits and vegetables, and other foods werepurchased from the local vendors.

Examples 11-174

The results are tabulated in Tables 1-6.

FIG. 1 demonstrates the retardation of the growth of fungus onblueberries with 2-methylcyclohexanone using the sachet methodcorresponding to Example 117. The untreated control sample on the 5^(th)day (a), and that treated with 2-methylcyclohexanone by the sachetmethod on the 67^(th) day (b), at room temperature. The fungus startedappearing on the 2^(nd) day in the untreated control sample while therewas no fungus in the treated sample even on the 67^(th) day.

FIG. 2 demonstrates the retardation of the growth of fungus on homemadefarmer's cheese by pre-treating with allyl isothiocyanate vaporcorresponding to Example 32. The untreated control sample on the 10^(th)day (a), and that treated allyl isothiocyanate vapor on the 35^(th) day(b), at room temperature. The fungus started on day 5 in the untreatedcontrol sample while there was no fungus in the treated sample even onthe 35^(th) day.

FIG. 3 demonstrates the delayed ripening in green tomatoes withcyclohexanone corresponding to Example 106. The untreated control sampleon the 10^(th) day (a), and that treated with a cyclohexanone sachet onthe 13^(th) days (b), at room temperature. The untreated control samplestarted changing from green to red on about the 7^(th) day and was redon the 10^(th) day while that treated with a cyclohexanone sachet wasyellow on the 14^(th) day and turned red on the 18^(th) day.

FIG. 4 demonstrates the delayed ripening of avocado with pre-exposure toacetylacetone vapor corresponding to Example 127. The cut control sampleon the 7^(th) day (a), and that pre-exposed to vapor of acetylacetone onthe 9^(th) day (b), at room temperature. The untreated control sampleripened and was soft and mushy at 7 days while that pre-exposed to vaporof acetylacetone was fresh, firm and green even on the 9^(th) day.

FIG. 5 demonstrates the delayed sprouting of potatoes with acetylacetoneby sachet method under 100% relative humidity corresponding to Example129. The untreated control samples of small yellow potatoes on the20^(th) day (a), and that treated with acetylacetone sachet method onthe 48^(th) day (b) at room temperature. The small yellow potatoesstarted sprouting on about the₆ ^(th) day while there was no sproutingof the potatoes treated with acetylacetonate even on the 48^(th) day.

FIG. 6 demonstrates the retardation of germination of unhusked ricepre-soaked in water for 16 hours and then treated with allylisothiocyanate by sachet method corresponding to Example 71. Theuntreated control samples of unhusked rice on 8^(th) day (a), and thattreated with a sachet of ally isothiocyanate after 41 days (b), at roomtemperature. The untreated control sample started germinating on the3^(rd) day while there was no germination of the unhusked rice treatedwith allyl isothiocyanate sachet even on the 41^(st) day.

FIG. 7 demonstrates the delayed curdling of pasteurized milk with allylisothiocyanate corresponding to Example 19. In ˜200 g of pasteurizedmilk 2 drops (˜0.05 g) of allyl isothiocyanate was added and thoroughlystirred/mixed. The untreated control sample on the 4^(th) day (a), andthat treated with ally isothiocyanate on the 21^(st) day (b), at roomtemperature. The untreated control sample started curdling on the 2^(nd)day and became solid and began to emit an unpleasant odor on the 4^(th)day while that treated with allyl isothiocyanate was still fluid andpourable with no solid and no unpleasant odor emitted even on the21^(st) day.

FIG. 8 demonstrates the delayed growth of fungus on cold pressed freshred tomato juice corresponding to Example 61. In about 100 g of coldpressed fresh red tomato juice was added one drop (˜0.02 g) of allyisothiocyanate and thoroughly stirred/mixed. The untreated controlsample (a) and its top view (a1) on the 7^(th) day, and that treatedwith ally isothiocyanate (b), its top view (b1) on the 7^(th) day, atroom temperature. The white and green fungus started appearing on 3^(rd)day on the control sample (a), and (a1) while there was no fungus or badodor on the sample treated with allyl isothiocyanate on the 20^(th) day(b) and (b1).

The effect of isothiocyanate shelf-life extenders is provided inTable 1. In Table 1 the following abbreviations are used: A is Indiancottage cheese; B is fresh, cold pressed red cabbage juice; C is fresh,cold pressed blackberry juice; D is Indian ivy gourd; E is fresh, coldpressed Red Delicious apple juice; F is fresh, cold pressed beet juice;G is fresh, cold pressed blueberry juice; H is fresh, cold pressedcarrot juice; I is Homemade Farmer's cheese; J is fresh, cold pressedgrape juice; K is fresh, cold pressed honeydew juice; L is Indianpointed gourd; M is Indian bitter melon; N is fresh, cold pressedpomegranate juice; O is Indian fried bread; P is fresh, cold pressed redgrape juice; Q is Indian millet bread; R is fresh, cold pressed tomatojuice; S is fresh, cold pressed orange juice; T is mixture of kidneybeans, moong whole, kala chana, black eye beans, red chori, muth, uradwhole/black matpe, val whole, and toor whole; U is Indian fenugreek; AIis allyl isothiocyanate; EI is ethyl isothiocyanate; PI is phenylisothiocyanate; P-E is pre-exposure method of treatment; and PR is thepreservative used. Further comments on each sample from Table 1 areprovided in Table 1S. In the tables Provisional Example # is a referenceto the corresponding example in U.S. Provisional Application No.63/140,160 filed Jan. 21, 2021 and U.S. Provisional Application No.63/231,890 for color photographs.

The effects of cyclic ketone shelf-life extenders are provided in Table2. In Table 2 the following abbreviations are used: CH: Cycloheptanone;CY: Cyclohexanone; 2CY: 2-Cyclohexen-1-one; CP: Cyclopentanone; MCP:1-Methylcyclopentene; 2MC: 2-Methylcyclohexanone; P-E: pre-exposuremethod of treatment. Further comments on each sample from Table 2 areprovided in Table 2S.

The effects of chelating agents (ligands) shelf-life extenders areprovided in Table 3. In Table 3 the following abbreviations are used:AA: Acetylacetone; ED: Ethylenediamine and P-E: pre-exposure method oftreatment. Further comments on each sample from Table 3 are provided inTable 3S.

The effects of boronic acid shelf-life extenders are provided in Table4. In Table 4 the following abbreviations are used: 4TBPBA:4-tert-Butylphenylboronic acid; 4BPBA: 4-Bromophenylboronic acid;3CIPBA: 3-Chlorophenylboronic acid; 3MPBA: 3-Methoxyphenylboronic acid;PBA: Phenylboronic acid and P-E: pre-exposure. Further comments on eachsample from Table 4 are provided in Table 4S.

The effects of other and natural shelf-life extenders are provided inTable 5. In Table 5 the following abbreviations are used: AC: Ammoniumcarbamate; ACB: Ammonium carbaminate; ACBO: Ammonium carbonate; BE:Benzyl Ether; 2BE: 2-Butoxyethanol; CC: Choline chloride; DC: Dimethylcarbonate; DM: Dimethyl maleate; 2EE: 2-Ethoxyethanol; HS: Hydrogensulfide; MA: Mandelic Acid; M: (−)-Menthone and P-E: pre-exposure.Further comments on each sample from Table 5 are provided in Table 5S.

The effects of a mixture of shelf-life extenders are provided in Table6. In Table 6 the following abbreviations are used: AI: Allylisothiocyanate; CY: Cyclohexanone; and P-E: pre-exposure. Furthercomments on each sample from Table 6 are provided in Table 6S.

TABLE 1 Spoilage Spoilage Example Spoilage Exposure Time - Time -Provisional # Criteria PR Food Method Control Sample Example # 11Browning AI Coriander 0.25 hr P-E 11 days 21+ days 118 12 Color AIPaneer (A) Sachet 9 days 10+ days 34 change 13 Color AI Red cabbage 0.02g 12 days 13 days 141 change juice (B) 14 Color AI Blackberry 0.02 g 5days 12 days 142 change juice (C) 15 Color AI Tindora (D) 2 hrs P-E 6days 17 days 103 change 16 Cream AI Raw cow 0.07 g 3 days 24 days 148milk 17 Curdling AI Milk 0.10 g 2 days 16 days 82 (pasteurized, wholemilk) 18 Curdling AI Milk & Yogurt 0.10 g 2 days 16 days 83 (whole milk& yogurt) mix 19 Curdling AI Milk 0.05 g 2 days 28 days 84 (pasteurized,whole milk) 20 Fungus AI Apple juice 0.02 g 7 days 13 days 136 (E) 21Fungus AI Beet juice (F) 0.02 g 7 days 13 days 139 22 Fungus AIBlueberries 16 hrs P-E 3 days 24 days 189 23 Fungus AI Blueberry 0.02 g3 days 12 days 138 juice (G) 24 Fungus AI Red cherries 1 hr P-E 2 days 7days 188 25 Fungus AI Broccoli 0.25 hr P-E 6 days 9 days 100 26 FungusAI Broccoli Sachet 6 days 9 days 101 27 Fungus AI Broccoli 2 hrs P-E 5days 16 days 102 28 Fungus AI Carrot juice 0.02 g 12 days 13 days 137(H) 29 Fungus AI Cauliflower 0.25 hr P-E 2 days 4 days 99 30 Fungus AIChickpeas Sachet 7 days 9+ days 125 31 Fungus AI Cucumbers 0.20% 5 days19 days 111 solution 32 Fungus AI Farmer's 0.5 hr P-E 5 days 34 days 157cheese (I) 33 Fungus AI Fresh, raw, Sachet 18 days 46 days 88 shelledundried peanuts 34 Fungus AI 5.3% Gelatin, 0.25 ml of 9 days 47 days 92175 bloom in 0.42% water solution 35 Fungus AI 5.3% Gelatin, Sachet 9days 47 days 93 175 bloom in water 36 Fungus AI Green grape 0.02 g 7days 30 days 134 juice (J) 37 Fungus AI 4% Guar Sachet 5 days 47 days 94Gum in water 38 Fungus AI Guar beans 1 hr P-E 6 days 40 days 97 39Fungus AI Guar beans 2 hrs P-E 6 days 17 days 98 40 Fungus AI Honeydew0.02 g 12 days 30 days 133 juice (K) 41 Fungus AI Karela (L) 2 hrs P-E 7days 33 days 107 42 Fungus AI Lychee 0.5 hr P-E 7 days 11 days 191 43Fungus AI Mixed 64 hrs P-E, 6 11 days 17 days 62 Legumes hrs soaking,dilute 44 Fungus AI Mixed 64 hrs P-E, 6 11 days 17 days 63 Legumes hrssoaking 45 Fungus AI Monterey Sachet 7 days 10+ days 33 cheese 46 FungusAI Parval (M) 2 hrs P-E 9 days 16 days 108 47 Fungus AI Pomegranate 0.02g 7 days 13 days 140 juice (N) 48 Fungus AI Puri (O) 16 hrs P-E 5 days70+ days 26 49 Fungus AI Raspberry 1 hr P-E 5 days 9 days 13 50 FungusAI Raspberry 0.33 hr P-E 5 days 31 days 14 51 Fungus AI Raw milk 1 hrP-E & 6 days 35 days 160 Cheddar Sachet cheese 52 Fungus AI Red grape0.02 g 13 days 13 days 135 juice (P) 53 Fungus AI Rotala (Q) 16 hrs P-E5 days 70+ days 28 54 Fungus AI Shelled 0.42% 5 days 8 days 71 peanutssolution 55 Fungus AI Sprouted Sachet 7 days 24 days 67 Mung 56 FungusAI 26.7% Starch 0.25 ml of 5 days 47 days 95 solution in 0.42% watersolution 57 Fungus AI 26.7% Starch Sachet 5 days 47 days 96 solution inwater 58 Fungus AI Strawberries 5 hrs P-E 2 days 15 days 190 59 FungusAI Tindora 2 hrs P-E 6 days 40 days 105 60 Fungus AI Tofu Sachet 6 days9+ days 31 61 Fungus AI Tomato juice 0.02 g 3 days 20 days 132 (R) 62Fungus AI Unshelled 5 ml of 0.42% 5 days 8 days 72 peanuts solution 63Fungus AI Wild Rice 5 ml of 10% 11 days 21 days 54 allyl isothiocyanatesolution in water 64 Fungus AI Wild Rice Sachet 11 days 21 days 55 65Gassed AI Orange juice 0.02 g 4 days 12 days 143 dome (S) 66 GerminationAI Mixed 0.10 g 3 days 9 days 59 Legumes (T) 67 Germination AI MixedSachet 4 days 21 days 58 Legumes 68 Germination AI Mixed Sachet 3 days 9days 60 Legumes 69 Germination AI Soft White Sachet 4 days 21 days 53Wheat 70 Germination AI Soft White 5 ml of 10% 4 days 21 days 52 Wheatallyl isothiocyanate solution in water 71 Germination AI UnshelledSachet 3 days 15 days 56 Rice 72 Odor AI White rice 5 ml of 10% 5 days21 days 50 allyl isothiocyanate solution in water 73 Odor AI White riceSachet 5 days 21 days 51 74 Rise of AI Freshly 1% in 100 g N/A N/A 86dough prepared flour dough for bread 75 Shriveling AI Parval 0.5 hr P-E4 days 4+ days 109 76 Shriveling AI Parval 1 hr P-E 4 days 4+ days 11077 Softening AI Avocado 0.25 hr P-E 2 days 2 days 42 78 Softening AIAvocado 2 hrs P-E 2 days 2 days 43 79 Sprouting AI Red 2 hrs P-E 9 days16 days 73 Potatoes 80 Sprouting AI Mix of red, 4 hrs P-E 22 days 46days 166 purple and yellow potatoes 81 Sprouting AI Fingerling 2 hrs P-E37 days 59 days 167 Potatoes 82 Sprouting AI Sprouted 0.5 hr P-E 4 days4+ days 173 Garlic 83 Wet AI Methi (U) 1 hr P-E 9 days 30 days 120 84Cream EI Raw cow 0.07 g 3 days 24 days 148 milk 85 Fungus EI Tomatojuice 0.02 g 4 days 27 days 145 86 Solid EI Pasteurized 0.05 g 3 days 14days 152 whole milk 87 Fungus PI White pearl Sachet 8 days 48 days 171onions 88 Fungus PI Yellow pearl Sachet 24 days 48 days 168 onions 89Fungus AI & Mixed 64 hrs P-E AI, 11 days 17 days 65 Humidity Legumes 6hrs soaking in water

TABLE 1S Example # Comments 11 Coriander loses its bright green colorbut never becomes yellow or wilts with allyl isothiocyanate. Otherspoilage criteria include becoming wet or wilty. 12 Other cheeses werealso tried with cyclohexanone, hydrogen sulfide, allyl isothiocyanate,and ammonium carbonate. 13 Other criteria for spoilage includes fungusgrowth. 14 Other criteria for spoilage includes fungus growth. 15Another criteria for spoilage includes fungus growth. 16 Anotherspoilage criteria includes the growth of fungus. 17 The treated sample'spH was 5. Another criteria for spoilage include a bad odor. 18 The pH ofthe treated sample was 4.5 at room temperature at 16 days. Anothercriteria of spoilage includes a bad odor. 19 An additional spoilagecriteria includes a bad odor. 20 Another criteria for spoilage includesa color change. 21 Another criteria for spoilage includes a colorchange. 22 Other preservatives tested include: acetylacetone, hydrogensulfide, 2-cyclohexen-1- one and cyclohexanone. 23 The treated samplejust had some settlement on the bottom but no fungus. Another criteriafor spoilage includes a color change. 24 Other preservatives testedinclude: acetylacetone, cyclohexanone and 2- cyclohexen-1-one. Testswere done with and without humidity. 25 Other criteria for spoilageinclude an unpleasant odor, a color change and wilting. 26 Othercriteria for spoilage include an unpleasant odor, a color change andwilting. 27 Broccoli was tested with preservatives such ascyclohexanone, ammonium carbamate, cycloheptanone, cyclopentanone,2-methylcyclohexanone, 4- methylcyclohexanone, (±)-camphor,(−)-menthone, allyl isothiocyanate, acetylacetone, 1-methylcyclopenteneand 2-cyclohexen-1-one. Other criteria for spoilage include anunpleasant odor, a color change and wilting. 28 The control sample alsoemitted a rotten odor. Another criteria for spoilage includes a colorchange. 29 Cauliflower in the control group also emitted an odor within2 days. Cauliflower has been tried with cyclohexanone, hydrogen sulfide,allyl isothiocyanate, and ammonium carbonate. 30 Chickpeas have beentried with acetylacetone, allyl isothiocyanate, 1- methylcyclopentene,and 2-cyclohexen-1-one. Another criteria for spoilage includes a colorchange. 31 Other criteria for spoilage include shriveling and wilting.36 The control sample formed bubbles/foam on top and created a gasseddome. Other criteria for spoilage include a color change and unpleasantodor. 39 Guar beans were tested with cyclohexanone, daikon piece, gingerpiece, horseradish piece, ammonium acetate, ammonium carbamate, ammoniumcabaminate, ammonium carbonate, acetylacetone, peace of wasabi, 1-methylcyclopentene and 2-cyclohexen-1-one. Guar has been dipped insolutions of diethylene glycol monoethyl ether,ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid-sodium salt, malic acid, mandelic acid,pyrogallic acid, daikon juice, ginger juice and horseradish juice. 40Another criteria for spoilage includes a color change or an unpleasantodor. 41 Karela has been tried with cyclohexanone, hydrogen sulfide,allyl isothiocyanate, and ammonium carbonate. Another spoilage criteriais yellowing. 42 Cyclohexanone and acetylacetone were also tested. 43 10ml was added to jar after exposure method. Other criteria for spoilageinclude germination and an unpleasant odor. 44 Water was added to jarafter exposure method. Other criteria for spoilage include germinationand an unpleasant odor. 46 Another spoilage criteria is yellowing. 47Another criteria for spoilage includes a color change. 48 There was verylittle change in color and softness of puri even after 70 days. Otherpreservative tried were cyclohexanone and allyl isothiocyanate. 51Results were the same regardless of exposure method. 52 After 5 days,the control sample began to lose its color and some foam appeared ontop. At 13 days, there was a layer of fungus on top of the controlsample and it had a bad odor. No change in the treated sample. Othercriteria for spoilage includes a color change or an unpleasant odor. 53There was very little change in color and softness of millet bread evenafter 70 days. 54 Shelled peanuts were pre-soaked in water overnight,dried then 5 ml of solution was added into jar. Other shelf-lifeextenders tested with cyclohexanone, 2-cyclohexen-1- one and1-methylcyclopentene. 55 Other criteria for spoilage include anunpleasant odor as well as sliminess. 57 Other shelf-life extenderstried with water soluble polymers were cyclohexanone, hydrogen sulfideand ammonium carbamate. 58 Acetylacetone, cyclohexanone,1-methylcyclopentene, hydrogen sulfide and 2- cyclohexen-1-one were alsotested with strawberries as well as the pre-exposure and sachet method.Tests were done with and without humidity. 59 Another criteria forspoilage includes a change of color from green to red (ripening). 60Cyclohexanone, hydrogen sulfide, allyl isothiocyanate and ammoniumcarbonate were tested as shelf-life extenders for tofu. 62 Unshelledpeanuts were also tested with cyclohexanone, 2-cyclohexen-1-one and 1-methylcyclopentene. 63 Wild rice was soaked in water and drained beforeadding shelf-life extender. 64 Wild rice in the control group alsoemitted a bad odor and was mushy. 65 The control sample produced a gaswith an unpleasant odor and the lid domed every day after 2 days.Another criteria for spoilage includes a color change. 66 Mixed legumeswere pre-soaked in water overnight, drained and placed into containerswith 50 ml water and shelf-life extender. Other criteria for spoilageincludes fungus growth, an unpleasant odor and/or softening/becomingmushy. 67 Mixed legumes were pre-soaked in water overnight, drained andplaced into containers with 10 ml water and shelf-life extender. Othercriteria for spoilage includes fungus growth, an unpleasant odor and/orsoftening/becoming mushy. 68 Mixed legumes were pre-soaked in waterovernight and drained. Other criteria for spoilage includes fungusgrowth, an unpleasant odor and/or softening/becoming mushy. 69 Softwhite wheat was soaked in water for a few hours and drain before exposedto shelf-life extender. It was also tested with ethylenediamine,ammonium hydroxide, and acetylacetone. 70 Soft white wheat was soaked inwater and drained before adding shelf-life extender. 71 Unshelled ricewas soaked in water for 16 hours and drained before exposing toshelf-life extender. 72 White rice was pre-soaked in water overnight anddrained before adding shelf-life extender. Other criteria of spoilageinclude becoming soft, mushy, soggy and/or yellowing 73 White rice waspre-soaked in water overnight and drained before adding shelf-lifeextender. Other criteria of spoilage include becoming soft, mushy, soggyand/or yellowing 74 The percent of allyl isothiocyanate was notoptimized but the results indicate that allyl isothiocyanate is capableof killing yeast. 75 Parval has been tried with allyl isothiocyanate,dried wasabi, and acetylacetone. 76 Parval has been tried with allylisothiocyanate, dried wasabi, and acetylacetone. 77 Other criteria forspoilage includes shriveling, wilting and browning. 78 Other criteriafor spoilage includes shriveling, wilting and browning. 79 White, yellowand red potatoes were also tested with cyclohexanone, hydrogen sulfide,ammonium carbamate, cycloheptanone, cyclopentanone, 2-methylcyclohexanone, 4-methylcyclohexanone, (±)-camphor, and(−)-menthone 81 After 25 days, potatoes were placed in an opencontainer. 83 Another criteria of spoilage includes wilting. 84 Anotherspoilage criteria includes the growth of fungus. 86 Other criteria forspoilage include fungus growth, separation of liquids, curdling, and/orbecoming thick in consistency. 87 Placed sachet in closed container with100% relative humidity. Another criteria for spoilage includessprouting. 88 Placed sachet in closed container with 100% relativehumidity. Another criteria for spoilage includes sprouting. 89 Water wasadded to cover mixed legumes after exposure method. Other spoilagecriteria include smelly and mushy.

TABLE 2 Spoilage Spoilage Example Spoilage Exposure Time - Time -Provisional # Criteria Preservative Food Method Control Sample Example #91 Fungus CH Blueberry Sachet 5 days 67 days 20 92 Browning CY CorianderSachet 11 days 11+ days 116 93 Fungus CY Raspberry Sachet 5 days 9 days12 94 Fungus CY Blueberry Sachet 3 days 73 days 17 95 Fungus CYBlueberry Sachet 5 days 67 days 19 96 Fungus CY Farmer's 0.5 hr P-E 5days 34 days 157 cheese 97 Fungus CY Horseradish 1 hr P-E 6 days 19 days179 98 Fungus CY Lychee Sachet 3 days 31 days 23 99 Fungus CY CheesecakeSachet 6 days 8+ days 24 100 Fungus CY Puri 16 hrs P-E 5 days 70+ days25 101 Fungus CY Rotala 16 hrs P-E 5 days 70+ days 27 102 Fungus CYMonterey Sachet 7 days 10+ days 32 cheese 103 Fungus CY Coconuts Sachet11 days 25 days 176 104 Fungus CY Cucumbers 1 hr P-E 4 days 21 days 112105 Fungus CY Boiled fresh Sachet 7 days 16 days 90 peanuts 106 RipeningCY Green 2 hrs P-E 10 days 18 days 46 tomato 107 Softening CY Florida 2hrs P-E 2 days 2 days 45 avocado 108 Softening CY Avocado 2 hrs P-E 2days 2 days 40 109 Fungus 2CY Raw milk 1 hr P-E 6 days 24 days 159mozzarella cheese 110 Fungus 2CY Sprouted 0.02 g in 7 days 12 days 70Mung 10 ml water 111 Germination 2CY Mixed 64 hrs P-E 3 days 3 days 57Legumes 112 Ripeness 2CY Papaya 2 hrs P-E 7 days 11 days 174 113Softening 2CY Avocado 2 hrs P-E 2 days 2 days 41 114 Yellowing 2CYCoriander 1 hr P-E 10 days 10+ days 114 115 Fungus CP Strawberry Sachet2 days 5 days 9 116 Fungus MCP Cucumbers 1 hr P-E 4 days 21 days 113 117Fungus 2MC Blueberry Sachet 5 days 67 days 21

TABLE 2S Example # Comments 92 Other spoilage criteria include wiltingand becoming wet. 98 Other shelf-life extenders tested include:cyclohexanone, hydrogen sulfide, leek & leek leaves, radish and radishleaves, daikon piece, collard green stem and methi leaves. 99 Cheesecakewas also tested with cyclohexanone, hydrogen sulfide, allylisothiocyanate and ammonium carbonate. 103 Placed with sachet in closedcontainer with 100% relative humidity. 2-Cyclohexen-1-one was alsotested with coconuts. 104 Other spoilage criteria includes shrivelingand wilting. 105 Other spoilage criteria includes darkening. 107 Otherspoilage criteria include shriveling, wilting and/or browning. 108 Otherspoilage criteria include shriveling, wilting and/or browning. 110Sprouted mung with 1 drop of 2-cyclohexen-1-one in 10 ml water had nochange at 12 days. Sprouted mung were also tested with wasabi(sliced/grinded), cyclohexanone and 1-methyl-1-cyclopentene. Otherspoilage criteria include sliminess, an unpleasant odor and/or becomingsoft or mushy. 111 After exposure, mixed legumes were soaked in waterovernight, drained, and then 10 mL of water was added to a closedcontainer. Other spoilage criteria includes growth of fungus and anunpleasant odor. 113 Other spoilage criteria include shriveling, wiltingand/or browning. 114 Other spoilage criteria include wilting andbecoming wet. 115 Other spoilage criteria include a loss of water,wilting and a color change. 116 Other spoilage criteria includeshriveling and wilting.

TABLE 3 Spoilage Spoilage Example Spoilage Exposure Time - Time -Provisional # Criteria Preservative Food Method Control Sample Example #118 Browning AA Lilies 0.01% <12 days 12+ days 192 solution 119 Color AAParsley 0.25 hr P-E 7 days 21+ days 122 change 120 Fungus AA Farmer's0.5 hr P-E 5 days 34 days 157 cheese 121 Fungus AA Horseradish 1 hr P-E6 days 19 days 179 122 Fungus AA Raw milk Sachet 3 days 35 days 158Ricotta cheese 123 Fungus AA Raspberry 1 hr P-E 5 days 31 days 15 124Fungus AA Yellow Sachet 24 days 48 days 169 pearl onions 125 Fungus AAWhite pearl Sachet 8 days 48 days 170 onions 126 Ripening AA Green 2 hrsP-E 14 days 18 days 47 tomato 127 Rotten AA Avocado 1 hr P-E 7 days 9days 186 inside 128 Rotten AA Haas 1 hr P-E 11 days 11 days 187 insideAvocado 129 Sprouting AA Small Sachet 8 days 48+ days 162 yellowpotatoes 130 Wilting AA Coriander 1 hr P-E 11 days 21+ days 117 131Color ED Parsley 0.25 hr P-E 7 days 22+ days 123 change 132 Ripening EDBanana 0.25 hr P-E 18 days 21+ days 49

TABLE 3S Example # Comments 118 Other spoilage criteria includingwilting, discoloration and dehydration. Other shelf- life extendersinclude cyclohexanone, 2-cyclohexen-1-one, 1-methylcyclopentene,3-methoxyphenylboronic acid, 3-chlorophenylboronic acid, benzyl ether,choline chloride and hydrogen sulfide. Other flowers tested includemarigold, salvia, vinca, daffodils, gerbera, roses, carnations, pompoms,alstroemeria, baby's breath, hydrangea, large tree leave, small treeleave, green vines, lavender, small purple and red garden flowers,walnut leaves, clovers, mug wort, pokeweed, chamomile, allium, yarrow,bee balm, daisy, tradescantia, malva and clematis multi blue. 119Parsley in the control group became yellow and brown. Another spoilagecriteria includes wilting. 122 Discoloration is another spoilagecriteria. 123 Raspberries were also tested with cyclohexanone, allylisothiocyanate and acetylacetone. Another spoilage criteria is a loss ofwater from the produce. 124 Another spoilage criteria includessprouting. 125 Another spoilage criteria includes sprouting. 126 Greentomatoes were also exposed to allyl isothiocyanate,1-methylcyclopentene, 2-cyclohexen-1-one, 2-butoxyethanol, dimethylcarbonate, dimethyl maleate, dimethyl malonate,4-hydroxy-4-methyl-2-pentatanone, dibutyl adipate, diethyl malate,diethyl malonate, and 2-ethoxyethanol. 129 Sachet placed insidecontainer with 100% relative humidity. 130 Other spoilage criteriainclude color browning or yellowing. 131 Another spoilage criteriaincludes wilting. 132 Other spoilage criteria includes brown spots.Bananas were also tested with cyclohexanone, hydrogen sulfide, ammoniumcarbamate, cycloheptanone, cyclopentanone, 2-methylcyclohexanone,4-methylcyclohexanone, (±)-camphor, (−)- menthone, allyl isothiocyanate,acetylacetone and a piece of wasabi.

TABLE 4 Spoilage Spoilage Example Spoilage Exposure Time - Time -Provisional # Criteria Preservative Food Method Control Sample Example #133 Fungus 4TBPBA Tomato 0.20 g 4 days 27 days 145 juice 134 Fungus4BPBA Raw milk 0.10 g 3 days 5 days 151 yogurt 135 Solid 3CIPBAPasteurized 0.05 g 3 days 14 days 153 fat free milk 136 Fungus 3MPBAOrange 0.02 g 4 days 27 days 146 juice with peel 137 Color PBA Lime 2%in water 6 days 6+ days change sprayed 138 Fungus PBA Blueberry 2% inwater 6 days 10+ days sprayed 139 Fungus PBA Strawberry 2% in water 6days 10+ days sprayed 140 Germination PBA Grains 2% in water 2 days 7+days sprayed 175 Color PBA Broccoli 2% in water 4 days 28 days changesprayed 176 Color PBA Methi 2% in water 4 days 28 days change sprayed

TABLE 4S Example # Comments 134 Other preservatives tested with raw milkyogurt include: allyl isothiocyanate, ethyl isothiocyanate, butylboronicacid, 4-tert- butylphenylboronic acid and 3-chlorophenylboronic acid.135 Other spoilage criteria include growth of fungus, separation andthickness 137 Limes were also sprayed with butylboronic acid. Otherspoilage criteria include fungus growth. 139 Other spoilage criteriaincludes loss of color and wilting. 140 Grains includes mixed legumesand soft white wheat. Other spoilage criteria includes color change ofstem, stem loss and/or wilting.

TABLE 5 Spoilage Spoilage Example Spoilage Exposure Time - Time -Provisional # Criteria Preservative Food Method Control Sample Example #141 Fungus AC Roti Sachet 8 days 80+ days 29 142 Fungus ACB Fresh,Sachet 5 days 45 days 89 unshelled peanuts 143 Color loss ACBO GroundSachet 2 days 2+ days 78 Beef 144 Color loss ACBO Ground Sachet 2 days2+ days 79 Chicken 145 Color loss ACBO Tilapia fish Sachet 2 days 2+days 80 fillet 146 Fungus BE Ginger 1 hr P-E 12 days 37 days 177 147Expedited 2BE Mango Sachet 14+ days 8 days 74 Ripening 148 Fungus 2BERed 2 hrs P-E 13 days 29 days 48 tomato 149 Dehydration CC Bok Choy 0.08hr 7 days 11 days 182 soaking in 22% solution in water 150 DehydrationCC Parsley 0.08 hr 7 days 11 days 183 soaking in 22% solution in water151 Ripening CC Peppers 2 hrs 6 days 13 days 184 soaking in 10% solutionin water 152 Color loss CC Broccoli 1 hr 1 day 8 days 181 soaking in 5%solution in water 153 Ripening CC Jalapeño 1 hr 3 days 8 days 185Peppers soaking in 10% solution in water 154 Sprouting CC Fingerling 2hrs 10 days 16 days 165 Potatoes soaking in 10% solution in water 155Expedited DC Mango Sachet 14+ days 8 days 75 ripening 156 Ripening DMMango Sachet 16 days 23 days 76 157 Ripening 2EE Mango 2 hrs P-E 16 days23 days 77 158 Browning HS Granny P-E ~5 hours 3 days 35 of flesh smithapples 159 Fungus HS Snow peas Sachet 6 days 11 days 126 160 Fungus HSSnow peas Sachet 11 days 15 days 128 161 Wet MA Coriander 0.5 hr 7 days7+ days 115 soaking in 1% solution in water 162 Shriveling M Radish 2hrs P-E 5 days 5 days 129 163 Fungus Daikon Strawberry Piece 2 days 6days 10 164 Fungus Daikon juice Carrot 1 hr 14 days 14 days 131 soakingin 8% solution in water 165 Fungus Ginger Blueberry Piece 3 days 11 days18 166 Fungus Ginger Snow peas Piece 6 days 11 days 127 167 FungusGinger juice Mandarins 1 hr 14 days 30 days 36 soaking in 8% solution inwater 168 Fungus Wasabi Mandarins Piece 14 days 30 days 37

TABLE 5S Example # Comments 143 Color loss included loss of pinkish,fleshy color. 144 Color loss included loss of fleshy color. 145 Colorloss included loss of fleshy color. 148 Red tomatoes were also testedwith 2-butoxyethanol, dimethyl carbonate, dimethyl maleate, dimethylmalonate, 2-cyclohexen-1-one, and 4-hydroxy-2-butanone. 149 Anothercriteria for spoilage includes a loss of green color. 150 Anothercriteria for spoilage includes a loss of green color. 151 Anothercriteria for spoilage includes a dehydration. 152 Another criteria forspoilage includes wilting. 153 Another criteria for spoilage includes adehydration. 157 Mangoes were tested with cyclohexanone, allylisothiocyanate, 1- methylcyclopentene, 2-cyclohexen-1-one,2-butoxyethanol, dimethyl carbonate, dimethyl maleate, dimethylmalonate, dibutyl adipate, 2-ethoxyethanol, and acetylacetonate. 158Apples were also exposed to allyl isothiocyanate and cyclohexanone. 159Another spoilage criteria includes the loss of green color. 160 Anotherspoilage criteria includes the loss of green color. Snow peas have beentried with cyclohexanone, daikon piece, ginger piece, horseradish piece,hydrogen sulfide, allyl isothiocyanate, 1-methylcyclopentene, and2-cyclohexen-1-one. 161 Other spoilage criteria include browning andbecoming wilty. 162 Radish has been tried with cyclohexanone, Hydrogensulfide, ammonium carbamate, cycloheptanone, cyclopentanone,2-methylcyclohexanone, 4- methylcyclohexanone, (±)-camphor,(−)-menthone, allyl isothiocyanate. Radish has been dipped in solutions:magnesium acetate tetrahydrate, magnesium chloride hexahydrate,magnesium hydroxide, magnesium phosphate dibasic trihydrate, magnesiumstearate, and magnesium sulfate heptahydrate. 163 Loss of water isanother spoilage criteria. 164 Another spoilage criteria includesbecoming wet. Baby Carrots have been Baby carrots have been dipped insolution of daikon juice, ginger juice, horseradish juice, and allylisothiocyanate. 166 Another spoilage criteria includes the loss of greencolor. 167 Mandarins were also exposed to 2-butoxyethanol, dimethylcarbonate, dimethyl maleate, dimethyl malonate, 2-cyclohexen-1-one, and4-hydroxy-2-butanone and by dipping/rinsing in solution of daikon juice,ginger juice, horseradish juice and allyl isothiocyanate.

TABLE 6 Spoilage Spoilage Example Spoilage Exposure Time - Time -Provisional # Criteria Preservative Food Method Control Sample Example #169 Fungus AI & CY Blackberry 0.25 hr P-E 3 days  7 days 16 170 FungusAI & CY Tindora 2 hrs P-E 6 days 17 days 104 171 Softening AI & CYAvocado 2 hrs P-E 2 days  2 days 44 172 Fungus AI & water Mixed 64 hrsP-E, 11 days  17 days 64 Legumes 6 hrs soaking 173 Fungus AI & waterSprouted 0.02 g in 7 days 12 days 68 Mung 10 ml water 174 Fungus AI & CY& Sprouted 0.02 g in 7 days 12 days 69 water Mung 10 ml water

TABLE 6S Example # Comments 169 Other preservatives tried werecyclohexanone and allyl isothiocyanate, separately. 170 Another spoilagecriteria includes ripening (reddening of tindora). 171 Avocados(Mexican/Haas) have been tried with 1- methylcyclopentene,2-cyclohexen-1-one, acetylacetone and hydrogen sulfide. Other spoilagecriteria include shriveling, wilting and browning. 172 Pre-exposed withwet napkin for humidity, drained and then added 10 ml of water to closedcontainer. Other spoilage criteria include smelly, slimy and/or mushy.173 Other spoilage criteria include smelly, slimy and/or mushy. 174Other spoilage criteria include smelly, slimy and/or mushy.

The invention has been described with reference to preferred embodimentswithout limit thereto. One of skill in the art would realize additionalembodiments which are described and set forth in the claims appendedhereto.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A shelf-life extender for extendingshelf-life of foods wherein said shelf-life extender is a non-aromaticcyclic ketone selected from a group consisting cyclobutanone,2-methylcyclopentanone, 3-methylcyclopentanone,2,2-dimethylcyclopentanone, 2,4-dimethylcyclopentanone,2-chlorocyclopentanone, cyclohexanone, 2-methylcyclohexanone,2-tert-butylcyclohexanone, 3-methylcyclohexanone, 4-methylcyclohexanoe,4-ethylcyclohexanone, 4-tert-butylcyclohexanone,2,2-dimethylcyclohexanone, 2,6-dimethylcyclohexanone, menthone,2,2,6-trimethylcyclohexanone, 3,3,5,5-tetramethylcyclohexanone,2-chlorocyclohexanone, 2-hydroxycyclohexanone dimer,2-methoxycyclohexanone, 8-mercaptomenthone, 2-nitrocyclohexanone,cycloheptanone, cyclooctanone, cyclononanone, cyclodecanone,cycloundecanone, cyclododecanone, cyclotridecanone, cyclopentadecanone,nopinone, 2-hydroxy-3-pinanone, norcamphor, fenchone, camphor,3-chloro-2-norbornanone, 3-bromocamphor, 3-bromocamphor,3,9-dibromocamphor, 9,10-dibromocamphor, 3,9,10-tribromocamphor,thiocamphor, bicyclo(3,2,1)octan-2-one, bicyclo(3,3,1)nonan-9-one,1-decalone, trans-1-decalone, 2-decalone,8-ketotricyclo(5,2,1.0(2,6)decane, 2-adamantanone, chrysanthemylalcohol, 1-acetyl-2-methyl-1-cyclopentene, 1-acetyl-1-cyclohexene,4-acetyl-1-methylcyclohexene, alpha-ionone, beta-ionone,2-acetyl5-norbornene, 2-methyl-2-cyclopenten-1-one,3-methyl-2-cyclopenten-1-one, 2-pentyl-2-cyclopenten-1-one,4,4-dimethyl-2-cyclopenten-1-one, 2,3,4,5-tertamethyl-2-cyclopentanone,cis-jasmone, 3-methyl-1,2-cyclopentanedione,3-ethyl-2-hydroxy-2-cyclopenten-1-one,6,7-dihydrocyclopenta-1,3-dioxin-5(4H)-one, 2-cyclohexen-1-one,3-methyl-2-cyclohexen-1-one, 4,4-dimethyl-2-cyclohexen-1-one,3,5,-dimethyl-2-cyclohexen-1-one, 2,4,4-trimethyl-2-cyclohexen-1-one,isophorone, pulegone, dihydrocarvone, carvone, carvone,2,4,4,6-tetrabromo-2,5-cyclohexadienone,4-methyl-4-trichloromethyl-2,5-cyclohexadien-1-one,5-(1-hydroxy-1-methylethyl)-2-methyl-2-cyclohexen-1-one,3-ethoxy-2-cyclohexen-1-one, 3-ethoxy-2-methyl-2-cyclohexen-1-one,4,4-dimethoxy-2,5-cycloheadien-1-one,3-amino-5,5-dimethyl-2-cyclohexen-1-one,3-(dimethylamino)-5,5-dimethyl-2-cyclohexen-1-one,3-(2-hyrdoxyehtylamino)-5,5-dimethyl-2-cyclohexen-1-one,2-cyclohepten-1-one, tropolone, 8-cyclohexadecen-1-one, verbenone,3-methylene-2-norbornanone,4,4A,5,6,7,8-hexahydro-4A-methyl-2(3H)-naphthalenone,bicyclo(10,3,0)pentadec-12(1)-en-13-one,1-methoxymethyl-5-norbornen-2-one,7-syn-methoxymethyl-5-norbornen-2-one, 2-acetylcyclopentanone,2-acetylcyclohexanone, tetramethyl-1,3-cyclobutanedione,3,3,5,5-tetramethyl-1,2-cyclopentanedione, 1,3-cyclopentanedione,2-methyl-1,3-cyclopentaedione, 2-ethyl-1,3-cyclopentanedione,1,3-cyclohexanedione, 1,4-cyclohexanedione, 1,3-cyclohexanedione,2-methyl-1,3-cyclohexanedione, 5-methyl-1,3-cyclohexanedione,5-isopropyl-1,3-cyclohexanedione hydrate,4,4-dimethyl-1,3-cyclohexanedione, 5,5-dimethyl-1,3-cyclohexanedione,2-chloro-5,5-dimethyl-1,3-cyclohexanedione, camphorquinone,camphorquinone, 3-(trifluoroacetyl)camphor, 3-(trifluoroacetyl)camphor,3-heptafluorobutyryl-camphor, 3-heptafluorobutyryl-camphor,cis-bicyclo(3,3,O)octane-3,7-dione,cis-1,5-dimethylbicyclo(3,3,0)octane-3,7-dione, (3AS,7AS)-hexahydro-3A-hydroxy-7A-methyl-1,5-indandione,bicyclo(3,3,1)nonane-3,7-dione, trans-1,5-decalindione,pentacyclo(5,4,0,0(2,6),0(3,10),0(5,9))-undecane-8,11-dione,3,4-dihydroxy-3-cyclobutene, 1,2-dione,3,4-dihydroxy-3-cyclobutene-1,2-dione,dilithium salt,3,4-dimethoxy-3-cyclobutene, 1,2-dione,3,4-diisopropoxy-3-cyclobutene-1,2-dione,3,4-dibutoxy-3-cyclobutene-1,2-dione, 4-cyclopentene-1,3-dione,4-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-cyclopentene-1,3-dione monohydrate,2-allyl-2-methyl-1,3-cyclopentanedione,2,6,6-trimethyl-2-cyclohexene-1,4-dione,3,5-di-tert-butyl-1,2-benzoquinone, tetrachloro-1,2-benzoquinone,tetrabromo-1,2-benzoquinone, 1,4-benzoquinone, methyl-1,4-benzoquinoine,2,6-dimethylbenzoquinone, thymoquinone,2,6-di-tert-butyl-1,4-benzoquinone, duroquinone,2-chloro-1,4-benzoquinone,2,5-dibromo-6-isopropyl-3-methyl-1,4-benzoquinone,tetrafluoro-1,4-benzoquinone, tetrachloro-1,4-benzoquinone,tetrabromo-1,4-benzoquinone, 2,5-dihydroxy-1,4-benzoquinone, chloranilicacid, 2,6-dichloroquinone-4-chloroimide, tetrahydroxy-1,4-quinonehydrate, 2-hydroxymethyl-6-methoxy-1,4-benzoquinone,2,3-dimethoxy-5-methyl-1,4-benzoquinone, coerulignone,9-methyl-delta/5(10)-octalin-1,6-dione,1,4,4A,8A-tetrahyrdro-endo-1,4-methano-naphthalene-5,8-dione,2-acetyl-1,3-cyclohexanedione, rhodizonic acid dihydrate, rhodizonicacid disodium salt, hexakeytocyclohexane octahydrate,2,3-dichloro-1,4,5,8-naphthalenetetrone, 1-diethylamino-3-butanone,4-acetoxy-2-azetidinone, 1-methyl-4-piperidone, 1-ethyl-3-piperidonehydrochloride, 1-ethyl-4-piperidone, 1-propyl-4-piperidone,3-quinuclidinone hydrochloride, 2,2,6,6-tetramethyl-4-piperidonemonohydrate, 2,2,6,6,-tetramethyl-4-piperidone hydrochloride,4-((1-methyl-4(1H)-pyridinyl-idene)ethylidene)-2,5-cyclohexadien-1-onehydrate, 3-hydroxy-1,2-dimethyl-4(1H)-pyridone,3,5-diacetyl-1,4-dihydro-2,6-dimethylpyridine, 5,5-dibromobarbituricacid, 4-oxo-temp free radical, 2-methyltetrahydrofuran-3-one,dihydro-2,2,5,5-tetramethyl-3(2H)-furanone, tetrahydro-4H-pyran-4-one,1,4-cyclohexanedione mono-ethylene ketal, 1,4-cyclohexanedionemono-2,2-dimethyl-trimethylene ketal, 4H-pyran-4-one,2,6-dimethyl-gamma-pyrone, 3-hydroxy-2-methyl-4-pyrone, tropinone, kojicacid, exo-6-hydroxytropinone, tetrahyrdrothiophen-3-one,tetrahydrothiopyran-4-one,beta,beta-dimethyl-gamma-(hydroxy-methyl)-gamma-butyrolactone,1,6-dioxaspiro(4,4)nonane-2,7-dione, and a mixture thereof for treatmentof a food to extend shelf-life of the foods.
 2. A shelf-life extenderfor extending shelf-life of foods wherein said shelf-life extender isselected from a group consisting of methylboronic acid, ethylboronicacid, propylboronic acid, isopropylboronic acid, butylboronic acid,isobutylboronic acid, pentylboronic acid, hexylboronic acid,n-octylboronic acid, cyclopentylboronic acid, 1-cyclopentenylboronicacid, cyclohexylboronic acid, ferroceneboronic acid,1,1′-ferrocenediboronic acid, 2,4,6-trivinylboroxin-pyridine complex,5-acetyl-2-thiopheneboronic acid, 5-bromo-2-thiopheneboronic acid,benzo[b]thiophene-2-boronic acid, benzofuran-2-boronic acid,2-bromopyridine-5-boronic acid, 1-(tert-butoxycarbonyl)-2-pyrroleboronicacid, 1,4-benzodioxane-6-boronic acid, benzofuran-3-boronic acid,benzo[b]thiophene-3-boronic acid, 5-chloro-2-thiopheneboronic acid,2-chloropyridine-5-boronic acid, 2-chloropyridine-3-boronic acid,2-chloropyridine-4-boronic acid, 5-chloro-2-fluoropyridine-3-boronicacid, dithieno[3,2-b:2′,3′-d]-thiophene-2-boronic acid,2,6-difluoro-3-pyridineboronic acid, dibenzothiophene-4-boronic acid,dibenzothiophene-2-boronic acid, dibenzofuran-4-boronic acid,2,6-dimethoxypyridine-3-boronic acid, 2,6-dichloropyridine-3-boronicacid, 2,3-dihydrobenzofuran-5-boronic acid, 2-ethoxypyridine-5-boronicacid, 9-ethylcarbazole-3-boronic acid, 2-furylboronic acid,3-furylboronic acid, 5′-formyl-2,2′-bithiophene-5-boronic acid,5-formyl-2-thiopheneboronic acid, 5-formyl-2-furanboronic acid,2-fluoropyridine-3-boronic acid, 2-fluoropyridine-5-boronic acid,5-fluoropyridine-3-boronic acid, 2-fluoropyridine-4-boronic acid,2-fluoro-3-methylpyridine-5-boronic acid, 6-indoleboronic acid,5-methyl-2-thiopheneboronic acid, 2-methoxypyridine-5-boronic acid,3,4-(methylenedioxy)phenylboronic acid, 2-methoxypyridine-3-boronicacid, 2-methylpyridine-5-boronic acid hydrochloride,2-methoxy-5-pyrimidylboronic acid, 2-methoxypyridine-4-boronic acid,5-methyl-2-furanboronic acid, 5-methoxypyridine-3-boronic acid,4-pyridylboronic acid, 3-pyridylboronic acid, 5-pyrimidylboronic acid,9-phenylcarbazole-3-boronic acid, 9-phenylcarbazole-2-boronic acid,quinoline-3-boronic acid, quinoline-8-boronic acid, quinoline-5-boronicacid, 2-thiopheneboronic acid, 3-thiopheneboronic acid,thieno[3,2-b]thiophene-2-boronic acid,2-(trifluoromethyl)pyridine-5-boronic acid, and a mixture thereof.
 3. Ashelf-life extender wherein the shelf-life extender is a ligand selectedfrom a group consisting of sulfide, thiocyanate, nitrate, azide,hydroxide, oxalate, nitrite, acetonitrile, pyridine, bipyridine,nitrite, triphenylphosphine, cyanide, aminopolycarboxylic acids,cryptates, cyclopentadienyl, diethylenetriamine, dimethylglyoximate,diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid, ethylenediaminetriacetate,glycinate, nitrosyl, nitrilotriacetic acid, monophenols, polyphenols,benzyl ether, 2-butoxyethanol, sulfite triethylenetetramine, and amixture thereof.